Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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592. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if it has been brought to his attention that pyrite has been found in some social housing; and the measures he intends to take to assist local authorities to deal with the problem. [39391/25]

Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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593. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if he is aware of how slow the pyrite redress scheme process is; and if this process will be sped up. [39392/25]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 592 and 593 together.

I understand the Question is referring to the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme.

The Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Act 2022 (the Act) commenced on 22 June 2023 and contains the enhanced grant scheme and adopted the related Regulations on 29 June 2023.

The Act also provides for the Defective Concrete Blocks (DCB) Social Homes Scheme. This is a scheme for the purpose of enabling a designated local authority or an Approved Housing Body (AHB) with dwellings located in a designated local authority area to remedy damage caused to dwellings, owned by the local authority/AHB, by the use of defective concrete blocks in their construction.

Section 36 of the Act provides that social homes will receive the same remediation options as those covered under the Enhanced Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme for private housing, and the same grant cap, grant rates and damage threshold requirements, along with access to ancillary grants.

A draft Scheme has been prepared by my Department and is being considered.

The draft DCB Social Homes Scheme will constitute the framework for the application of the provisions contained in the Act. It is informed by feedback the Department has received from The Irish Council for Social Housing (ICSH) regarding AHB units where there are concerns about the impact of defective concrete blocks. My Department has also had engagement with the five designated counties under the Act - Donegal, Mayo, Limerick, Clare and Sligo - regarding their affected housing stock.

I can inform the Deputy that the forthcoming Scheme will assist local authorities who have social housing stock affected by defective concrete blocks.

Defective Concrete Blocks is a complex issue which the Government is addressing by allocating a significant amount of money to affected homeowners to enable them to rebuild their homes and get on with their lives.

Currently (at the end June 2025) 2,796 homeowners are at various stages of the scheme. The Housing Agency has made grant determinations for 678 homeowners with a further 855 transitional grant determinations made by Donegal and Mayo County Councils. There are 908 homeowners who commenced works with 203 completions to date under scheme.

Of the above 2,796, Limerick City and County Council have received 63 applications and 20 determinations of remedial options and grants amounts have been determined by the Housing Agency.

An Implementation Steering Group for the DCB Grant scheme has been in place since 2023. The Group comprises officials from the relevant local authorities, my Department, the Housing Agency, and the Homeowner's Liaison Officer. This Group meets regularly (every 4-6 weeks) and keeps the operation of the scheme under review and is tasked with working through issues as they arise and making recommendations if further changes to the regulations or guidelines are needed. This group provides a useful forum for discussion and feedback on operational and emerging matters around the scheme and draws attention to issues faced by applicants. The most recent engagement took place on 10 July, 2025, with the next meeting scheduled for September, 2025. This regular stakeholder engagement is augmented by meetings with elected representatives and homeowner groups.

I received Government approval (on 4 June, 2025) for the priority drafting of the Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks (Amendment) Bill which includes details of the wider group of relevant owners that can avail of the increases in the grant scheme cap and rates approved in October and November 2024. The Bill will also include other technical amendments to ensure the smoother operation of the grant scheme for homeowners.