Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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206. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government when the draft regulations pertaining to the defective concrete block scheme for social housing remediation works will be adopted and published (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21022/24]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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I commenced the Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Act 2022 (the Act) on 22 June 2023 which contains the enhanced grant scheme and adopted the related Regulations on 29 June 2023.

Section 36 of the Act provides that the Government may make a further Defective Concrete Blocks (DCB) scheme for the purposes of enabling a designated local authority or an approved housing body to remedy damage caused to dwellings by the use of defective concrete blocks in their construction.

My Department is working closely with the designated local authorities and Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) affected by Defective Concrete Blocks in developing a DCB Social Homes Scheme. Work is at an advanced stage and I expect it to be finalised in the coming weeks.

The DCB social homes scheme will include the same grant rates and caps as outlined in the private scheme for homeowners. It will apply to local authority and AHB homes located within designated local authority areas and will encourage local authorities to manage efficiencies and make the best use of all available resources to remediate their affected homes.

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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Since I received Government approval in January 2023 to draft legislation to establish supports for the remediation of fire safety, structural safety and water ingress defects in apartments and duplexes, constructed between 1991 and 2013, my Department has been advancing the steps to put the remediation scheme on a statutory footing as a matter of priority. Given the complexity of the issues, including the significant amount of Exchequer funding that this Government has committed to assist affected homeowners, sufficient time is required to ensure that the scheme is fit for purpose, provides value for tax payer’s money and contains appropriate oversight and governance measures. It is expected the draft legislation will be published in 2024 and that, subject to the legislative process, the statutory scheme will be in place shortly thereafter.

Pending the introduction of the statutory scheme, an Interim Remediation Scheme (Scheme) for the funding of emergency fire safety defect works in apartments and duplexes has been in place since December 2023. This Scheme, which is being administered by The Housing Agency on a nationwide basis, is open to applications from apartment Owner Management Companies (OMCs) via The Housing Agency’s website, and can be accessed at the following link: www.housingagency.ie/interim-remediation-scheme-fire-safety-defects-eligible-apartments-and-duplexes-2023

In the period since the Scheme’s launch, up to and including 30 April 2024, 238 applications for fire safety remediation work are being progressed across 27 local authority areas, representing a total of 14,018 residential units.