Michael Cahill (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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13. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government if he will urgently address the long delays, currently over two years, in SEAI grant processing times in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34882/25]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal East, Fianna Fail)
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The Warmer Homes Scheme aims to improve the energy efficiency and warmth of homes owned by people at risk of energy poverty by providing fully funded retrofits. The scheme is operated by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) on behalf of my Department and is funded through carbon tax receipts and the European Regional Development Fund.

Last year saw a record spend of almost €230 million under the scheme. As reported by the SEAI, this resulted in 7,743 upgrades being provided to low-income households. This year’s budget includes an allocation of €280 million for the Warmer Homes Scheme.

These budgets have allowed the scheme to deliver a greater number of deeper and more complex upgrades in recent years. This is reflected in the average cost of upgrades which the SEAI indicates has increased from €2,600 in 2015 to just under €29,000 in Q1 of 2025. These deeper upgrades mean that more lower income homeowners are benefitting significantly from warmer, healthier and more comfortable homes. So far in 2025, 2,954 homes have been upgraded under the scheme.

For homes completed in 2024 the average waiting time was 18 months for the worst performing homes (those with a BER of E, F or G) and 19 months for better performing homes.

The average waiting time under the Warmer Homes Scheme, from application to completion of upgrade works to date in 2025 was 21 months for the worst performing homes and 22 months for better performing homes.

It is important to note that these averages represent a significant reduction since 2022 when the average waiting time was 26 months. The reduction in waiting times follows a range of measures introduced by my Department and the SEAI. These include the allocation of additional staff to the Warmer Homes Scheme; a significantly increased budget allocation; active contract engagement and management by the SEAI to increase contractor output; as well as actions to address ongoing supply chain pressures.

Given the very high number of applications (approximately 12,000 in 2024 compared to approximately 2,800 in 2021) and greater volume of deeper retrofits being provided under the scheme, the SEAI is projecting that new applications may face longer waiting times.

My Department and the SEAI continue to keep waiting times under review, and to work to deliver energy upgrades to low-income households and reduce the waiting times for the Warmer Homes Scheme as a priority.

Applicants can contact the SEAI at any time to get further information on the status of their application either by email or by telephone – details are on the SEAI website. Oireachtas members can make queries on behalf of applicants by contacting the dedicated email address oireachtas@seai.ie.