Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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232. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the extent to which his Department has identified issues deemed to impede the provision of much-needed affordable housing on State lands throughout the country; if he expects to be in a position to address the issue in due course; if the issues that currently impede a speedy and efficient public authority response to the affordable housing crisis will be resolved at an early date in order to ensure delivery of the Housing For All Programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12214/23]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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Housing for All is the Government’s plan to increase the supply of housing to an average of 33,000 per year over the next decade. Under Housing for All, the Government aims to deliver 54,000 affordable homes between now and 2030, to be facilitated by local authorities, Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs), the Land Development Agency (LDA) and through a strategic partnership between the State and retail banks.

The LDA has an immediate focus on managing the State’s own lands to develop new homes, and regenerate under-utilised sites. In the longer-term, it will assemble strategic land-banks from a mix of public and private lands making these available for housing in a controlled manner, which is expected to bring essential more long-term stability to the Irish housing market.

Through Housing for All, the Government is providing a range of supports to accelerate the delivery of social and affordable housing on state lands including strengthening the legislative underpinning of the LDA's role and making significant investment funding available to provide social and affordable housing on those lands.

The LDA has already started building homes on state lands. The Agency are working in partnership with Dún Laoghaire - Rathdown County Council and have commenced construction of 597 social and affordable homes at Shanganagh Co. Dublin. On completion, this will be the largest public housing scheme in the state, delivering on the LDA's mission to unlock state land to deliver large scale affordable housing projects.

Further projects are in the pipeline and details can be found in the Q4 2022 Housing for All progress report www.gov.ie/en/collection/9d2ee-housing-for-all-quarterly-progress-reports/

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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233. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the extent to which the provision of utilities such as electricity and water to new houses is currently limiting progress in the construction sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12215/23]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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Housing for All recognises that in order to create the environment needed to enable supply of over 300,000 new homes by 2030, land needs to be serviced with transport, utilities and other infrastructure. Housing for All provides for this ‘whole of system’ approach. In line with Action 22.6 of the Housing for All Action Plan Update (November 2022) both Uisce Éireann and the ESB are enhancing measures to ensure the timely delivery of housing connections and to clearly identify responsibilities of those building homes, and Uisce Éireann and ESB in advance of completing connections. With regard to water, Uisce Éireann has statutory responsibility for all aspects of water services planning, delivery and operation at national, regional and local levels. The scope, prioritisation and progression of individual projects is a matter for Uisce Éireann and is approved through its own internal governance structures.

Uisce Éireann is committed to supporting the delivery of housing including under Housing for All and provides my Department with updates containing key information on how they are supporting the housing plan by providing water services to new homes, key public services and businesses. Uisce Éireann is supporting the delivery of Housing for All through a number of actions, including the timely delivery of housing connections.

In this regard, to be of assistance, Uisce Éireann has provided the following information in relation to 2022:

- Pre-connection enquiries:Uisce Éireann gave positive responses to 3,190 pre-connection enquiries associated with 116,647 housing units.

- Connection offers: Uisce Éireann issued 4,473 connection offers in 2022, associated with 36,989 housing units.

- Connection agreements: Customers executed connection agreements for 3,693 offers, associated with 28,188 housing units.

- Connections: Uisce Éireann completed 4,258 connections to water infrastructure associated with 25,347 housing units.

Uisce Éireann has established a dedicated team to deal with representations and queries from public representatives. The team can be contacted via email to oireachtasmembers@water.ieor by telephone on a dedicated number, 0818 578 578.

My Department does not have responsibility for electricity supply and as such does not hold information in relation to electricity along the lines set out in the Question.