Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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261. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the cost to increase the energy efficiency retrofitting programme budget over a five year period, with an increase of 33% per year, by years one to five. [28260/25]

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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270. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government to estimate the cost to increase the energy efficiency retrofitting programme budget by 100% over five years. [28273/25]

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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281. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government to estimate the cost to increase the energy efficiency retrofitting programme budget under the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage over a five-year period, with an increase of 50% per year, broken down by years 1 to 5.; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28321/25]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 261, 270 and 281 together.

The Energy Efficiency Retrofit Programme (EERP) aims to retrofit a local authority home to a minimum BER rating of B2. It is expected that 36,500 local authority owned homes will be retrofitted under this programme out to 2030.

€90m is available to the programme in 2025 to upgrade approximately 2,500 homes. The table below indicates the increase in funding required based on the percentage increases.

(100% over 5 year years has been interpreted as 20% per year)

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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262. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the full-year cost to employ one FTE per staffing level in An Bord Pleanála. [28262/25]

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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263. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the full-year cost to employ one FTE with biodiversity expertise, one FTE with expertise in environmental planning, one FTE with expertise in renewable energy, per staffing level, in An Bord Pleanála. [28263/25]

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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271. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the number of WTE and HTE staff, by grade working in An Bord Pleanála and the estimated cost of increasing staffing by 50% at each grade. [28277/25]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 262, 263 and 271 together.

An Bord Pleanála (the Board) is the national independent statutory body with responsibility for the determination of planning appeals and direct applications for strategic infrastructure and other developments under the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, and certain other Acts.

As of April 2025, there were 271.7 WTE staff members employed at the Board. These included 57.8 Senior Planning Inspectors, 37 Planning Inspectors, 4 Ecologists, 1 Engineer, 1 Environmental/Marine Scientist, 8 Assistant Directors of Planning and 2 Directors of Planning. When Board Members are included, the total WTE equivalent number of all persons employed in the organisation stood at 286.7 at the end of April 2025.

It is intended that when all approved posts are filled, over 300 people will be employed by the Board. This will represent an increase of over 50% in the overall agreed staffing levels at the Board since 2021. The Board has received approval and sanction from my Department for a total of 313 posts to date.

There are more Board members are in situ than at any stage previously. The total number of Board members serving in An Bord Pleanála is now 15, the maximum provided for under planning legislation.

Staff of the Board are remunerated in accordance with the relevant salary scale associated with the particular post. Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform Circular 06/2025 outlines all civil service pay scales, effective from 1 March 2025 and can be viewed at the following link: assets.gov.ie/static/documents/circular-06-2025-application-of-01-march-2025-pay-adjustment.pdf.

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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264. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the cost to double funding available for biodiversity officers in local authorities. [28266/25]

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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265. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government full-year cost to employ a FTE biodiversity officer in a local authority in 2025. [28267/25]

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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266. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the number of biodiversity officers employed in each local authority broken down by local authority; the number of vacancies that exist; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28268/25]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 264, 265 and 266 together.

There are currently 38 Biodiversity Officers in place across 29 of the 31 local authorities. The remaining two local authorities currently without a Biodiversity Officer (Cork County Council and South Dublin County Council) are currently at an advanced stage in the recruitment process.

Of the Biodiversity Officers currently in place, 28 are part of the Heritage Council Biodiversity Officer Programme funded by my Department. This programme provides a funding subvention for Biodiversity Officer salaries as follows:

In the first year following recruitment the Heritage Council provides 75% of salary costs; in the second year 50%; in the third and subsequent years 25%. Each local authority is responsible for paying the remaining portion of the salary from its own funding.

Under the Heritage Council programme, Biodiversity Officers are appointed at the Executive Engineer grade. The salary scale for this position ranges from €59,067 to €82,108 (including long-service increments).

The Heritage Council expects to spend €1.7m on the Local Authority Biodiversity Officer Programme in 2025. In 2025 the Council will provide additional project funding of €511,628 to support Biodiversity Officers to create and implement Local Biodiversity Action Plans.

Accordingly, doubling the funding for Biodiversity Officers provided by my Department through the Heritage Council would cost an additional €2.2m, for a total annual expenditure of €4.4m.

It is important to note that local authorities are responsible for paying a portion of Biodiversity Officers' salaries from their own resources, and that Biodiversity Officers may also draw down funding from the Local Biodiversity Action Fund operated by the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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267. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the number of climate action officers employed in each local authority broken down by local authority; the number of vacancies that exist; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28269/25]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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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/she is responsible. My Department oversees workforce planning for the local government sector, including the monitoring of local government sector employment levels. To this end, my Department gathers aggregate quarterly data on staff numbers in each local authority on a whole time equivalent basis.

However, granular data, in terms of the number of climate action officers employed in each local authority or vacancies arising at this level, is not collected and consequently is not available in my Department. The relevant information would be available from each local authority.

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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268. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government to estimate the cost of installing 5kW of solar PV on 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, 50% of all social housing [28270/25]

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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269. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government to estimate the cost of installing 5kw solar PV on 5000 social homes [28271/25]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 268 and 269 together.

The works eligible under my Department's revised Energy Efficiency Retrofit Programme include attic/cavity wall insulation or external wall insulation where required, windows and doors replacement, heat pump installation and ancillary and associated works. These funded measures achieve a minimum B2 BER rating. My Department does not collate information on the cost to install solar PV panels.

In limited circumstances, my Department will fund the installation of 1kWp solar PV for small social homes with a floor area less than 55 m2, with a maximum HLI of 2.6 on a pilot basis. In such cases, local authorities are required to cooperate with SEAI as part of research monitoring the performance of heat pumps in these dwellings. These limited circumstances are supported within the current funding envelope.

Notwithstanding the eligible measures funded by my Department, local authorities can install PV Panels using funding from their own resources and therefore, further details may be available directly from the local authority sector on request.

Furthermore, under the Microgeneration Support Scheme led by the Department for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Solar PV is available for all domestic premises.