Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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130.To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if assistance will be provided to a family (details supplied) for an SEAI appeal; and if he will make a statement on the matter.[35392/24]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) operates the Warmer Homes Scheme on behalf of my Department. My officials work with the SEAI on an ongoing basis to accelerate the output of free energy upgrades provided under this critical scheme. It is important to note however, that individual applications to the Warmer Homes Scheme are an operational matter for SEAI, and as Minister I have no function in relation to scheme applications.

Oireachtas members can make queries on behalf of applicants by contacting the dedicated email address, oireachtas@seai.ie.

The Deputy may wish to note that Government also has other schemes and supports in place which may be of assistance where there is an urgent need:

• The Department of Social Protection's Additional Needs Payment is a payment available to people who have essential expenses that they cannot pay from their weekly income. Additional Needs Payments are paid under Supplementary Welfare Allowance which is administered by the Community Welfare Service (CWS) or the Department of Social Protection. Details are available here: www.gov.ie/en/service/4eb45-additional-needs-payment/

• The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage's Housing Adaptation Grants can assist older people to have necessary adaptations, repairs or improvement works carried out in order to make their accommodation more suitable for their needs. Details are available here: www.gov.ie/en/service/6636c-housing-adaptation-grants-for-older-people-and-people-with-a-disability/

Michael Lowry (Tipperary, Independent)
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131.To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the reason a better energy warmer homes application submitted over 14 months ago (details supplied) has not yet received its BER assessment; if his Department will review this application; if he is confident that the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland has sufficient resources to manage and cope with the large volume of applications it is receiving; the general timeframe for BER assessments and full processing of better energy warmer home applications; and if he will make a statement on the matter.[35475/24]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) operates the Warmer Homes Scheme on behalf of my Department. My officials work with the SEAI on an ongoing basis to accelerate the delivery of free energy upgrades provided under this critical scheme. It is important to note however, that applications to the Warmer Homes Scheme are an operational matter for the SEAI and as Minister, I have no function in relation to individual applications. Oireachtas members can make queries on behalf of applicants by contacting the dedicated email address, oireachtas@seai.ie.

Last year saw a record spend of €158 million under the scheme with an allocation of almost €210 million in place for 2024. This budget includes funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). The funding increases have supported the delivery of a greater volume of deeper and more complex upgrades. This is reflected in the average cost of upgrades which have seen an almost tenfold increase from €2,600 in 2015 to approximately €25,806 in 2024.

These deeper upgrades mean that more lower income homeowners are benefitting significantly from warmer, healthier and more comfortable homes, with lower energy bills and reduced emissions. However, deeper retrofits take longer to complete. This improvement in the upgrades provided under the scheme in tandem with increased awareness of the multiple benefits of retrofit are driving significantly increased levels of demand.

For homes completed in 2023, the average waiting time from application to completion was 20 months. This is a reduction from 27 months for homes completed in 2022. The SEAI indicates that the average timeframe for BER assessments is 12 months, though this can vary.

A range of measures introduced by my Department and SEAI contributed to the reduction in waiting times, including:

• Significantly increased budgets and budget certainty with a spend of €158 million in 2023 and a record budget allocation of almost €210m in 2024 including funding from the European Regional Development Fund;
• Increased staffing resources in SEAI;
• Actions to address supply chain challenges;
• SEAI also established a new contractor panel in September 2023, which increased the number of contractors operating under the scheme; and
• Homes with the lowest energy ratings (E, F, G) are now prioritised for works.

• The Department of Social Protection's Additional Needs Payment is a payment available to people who have essential expenses that they cannot pay from their weekly income. Additional Needs Payments are paid under Supplementary Welfare Allowance which is administered by the Community Welfare Service (CWS) or the Department of Social Protection. Details are available here: www.gov.ie/en/service/4eb45-additional-needs-payment/

• The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage's Housing Adaptation Grants can assist older people to have necessary adaptations, repairs or improvement works carried out in order to make their accommodation more suitable for their needs. Details are available here: www.gov.ie/en/service/6636c-housing-adaptation-grants-for-older-people-and-people-with-a-disability/