Ruairí Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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627. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if there are plans to conduct a local-authorities based review of estate management issues and solutions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47650/25]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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The management and maintenance of local authority housing stock, including pre-letting repairs to vacant properties, the implementation of a planned maintenance programme and carrying out of responsive repairs, are matters for each individual local authority under Section 58 of the Housing Act 1966.

Local authorities also have a legal obligation to ensure that all of their tenanted properties are compliant with the provisions of the Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations, 2019. Local authority officials and elected members have a very important role to play in this regard by making adequate budgetary provision for housing repairs and cyclical maintenance utilising the significant housing rental income available to them as part of the annual budgetary process.

Notwithstanding the legal obligations on local authorities to manage and maintain their housing stock, my Department provides annual funding to local authorities under a number of focused programmes which include Voids, Energy Efficiency and the Disabled Persons Grant. Full details in relation to the funding provided and units returned are available on my Department’s website at the following links:

Voids Programme: www.gov.ie/en/collection/0906a-other-local-authority-housing-scheme-statistics/#voids-programme

Energy Efficiency Retrofit Programme www.gov.ie/en/publication/668c1-energy-efficiency-retrofitting-programme-expenditure-output/

Disabled Persons Grants: www.gov.ie/en/publication/061cd-disabled-persons-grant-and-improved-works-in-lieu-schemes-allocation-and-drawdown/?referrer=

Furthermore, my Department is financially supporting local authorities in undertaking stock condition surveys supported by an ICT Asset Management system. To that end, my Department provides a contribution of €150 per survey and it is a matter for each local authority how they utilise this funding. All 31 local authorities are now live on the ICT Asset Management system.

There are c.150,000 local authority homes and the ambition is to have stock condition surveys carried out on all local authority homes and to complete this work over 4 to 5 years, with 2025 considered as year zero. These surveys will inform future work programmes and ensure they are strategic and focused with a cyclical programme of inspection, repair and replacement.