Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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671. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the number of households with disability needs currently accommodated through the housing assistance payment; and whether the Department plans reforms to ensure disability-appropriate housing is prioritised over temporary supports. [63948/25]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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The Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) is a flexible and immediate housing support that is available to all eligible households throughout the State. Under HAP, a tenant sources their own accommodation in the private rented market. At the end of Q2 2025, over 128,500 HAP tenancies had been set up since the scheme commenced, of which there were 51,736 households actively in receipt of HAP support. The Department do not hold data on the number of households with disabilities currently in receipt of HAP.

Delivering Homes, Building Communities, published 13 November 2025, is Ireland’s new national housing plan. It is a wide-ranging action plan focused on housing supply and targeting homelessness, encompassing two pillars activating supply and supporting people. Within Pillar 2, which details how Government will support people, is a commitment to implement the National Housing Strategy for Disabled People (NHSDP) 2022-2027 in conjunction with housing actions identified in the new National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025 - 2030.

My Department jointly published the NHSDP and Implementation Plan with the Department of Health and the Department of Children, Disability, and Equality, The Strategy and Implementation Plan may be accessed on my Department’s website at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/publication/60d76-national-housing-strategy-for-disabled-people-2022-2027/.

The Implementation Plan sets out the actions to achieve the vision of the joint Strategy for delivering housing and related supports for disabled people to 2027. It supports the primary objective of the Strategy which is ‘to facilitate disabled people to live independently with the appropriate choices and control over where, how and with whom they live, promoting their inclusion in the community.’