Ruairi Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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373. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the total number of housing assistance applications received and processed by each local authority from January to June 2022; the number of staff dedicated in each local authority to the processing of HAP applications during the same period; the turnaround time from receipt of HAP applications to their completion in each local authority during the same six-month period in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54490/22]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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The Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) scheme plays a vital role in housing eligible families and individuals. At the end of Q2 2022, over 104,700 HAP tenancies had been set-up since the scheme commenced, of which there were over 60,700 households actively in receipt of HAP support.

Administration of the HAP scheme is a matter for the relevant local authority. To support local authorities in the implementation of the HAP scheme my Department provides a quarterly administrative payment based on the number of active HAP tenancies in each local authority. This administrative payment recognises the resources required to manage the HAP process. The payment is made directly to local authorities on a quarterly basis, to offset HAP staffing and administrative costs.

HAP application processing times within local authorities may vary. Once a HAP application has been received and confirmed as valid by the relevant local authority, it is entered on the system by the local authority and then submitted for processing and payment by the HAP Shared Service Centre (HAP SSC). If there are delays at the processing stage within a local authority, payment to the landlord will be backdated to the date on which a complete and valid application form was received by the local authority.The landlord is therefore not penalised for any delay.

Data on HAP tenancy set-ups, and processing times is set out below:

The day-to-day operation of the social housing system is a matter for the relevant local authority. Under section 159 of the Local Government Act 2001, each Chief Executive is responsible for the staffing and organisational arrangements necessary for carrying out the functions of the local authority for which he or she is responsible. My Department and the local authorities are aware of the importance of minimising HAP processing times and the critical need to keep this under review at a local level.