Written Answers Nos. 31-50
31. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to provide an update on the planned provision of disability-specific housing to include all schemes such as second-hand acquisitions programme, housing adaptation grants funding and new builds; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12879/25]
View answerMy Department jointly published the National Housing Strategy for Disabled People (NHSDP) 2022-2027 and Implementation Plan with the Department of Health and the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth. 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 107 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’. Accessibility is a key feature running through all of the Actions in the Plan each of which is assigned to one or more stakeholders.
The Strategy and Implementation Plan operate under the framework of Housing for All. A key action of Housing for All required local authorities to develop Housing Delivery Action Plans to include details of both social and affordable housing delivery as appropriate over the period 2022-2026, in line with targets set under Housing for All. The Plans also include details of proposed delivery of housing for disabled people. Housing Delivery Action Plans are published on the websites of the respective local authorities.
My Department provides funding to local authorities in respect of the Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and Disabled People, to assist eligible people in private houses to make their accommodation more suitable for their needs. The suite of grants, which includes the Housing Adaptation Grant for Disabled People, the Mobility Aids Grant and the Housing Aid for Older People Grant, are funded by the Department with a contribution from the resources of the local authority. The detailed administration of the grants, including the assessment, approval and prioritisation of applications, is the responsibility of the local authorities.
Budget 2025 provided for an increase of €25m in the funding provision for the Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and Disabled People, with almost €100 million allocated for 2025, continuing the year on year increases since 2014.
32. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to clarify if a local authority can refuse to take in charge a housing estate where the wastewater treatment facility has not been taken in charge by Uisce Éireann-Irish Water, where the developer of the estate has gone into liquidation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12687/25]
View answer92. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the programme to be put in place by his Department to arrange for Irish Water-Uisce Éireann to take in charge over 500 individual waste water treatment plants across the country where the reason being given for not being taken in charge is that the current treatment plants are not up to standard, where the developers in each case have gone into liquidation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12688/25]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 32 and 92 together.
I understand that the Question is referring to housing estates which have not, as yet, been taken-in-charge by local authorities that are not connected to the public Uisce Éireann network but instead rely upon infrastructure provided by the developers of the estate for their water services. This infrastructure is called Developer Provided Infrastructure (DPI).
With effect from 1 January 2024, Uisce Éireann, as the national water authority, is responsible for the progressive remediation of DPI infrastructure nationally.
Given the scale and complexity involved with many of the instances of DPI across the country, it is acknowledged that it will take time to resolve all estates and that a range of resolution options are being considered.
33. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of housing units purchased by international investment funds in Ireland, in each of the past ten years and to date in 2025. [12019/25]
View answerMy Department does not collect the data sought.
That said, the Central Statistics Office publishes data in respect of residential property transactions by non-households, including international investment funds. The latest data available are for 2023 and can be accessed on the CSO website (data.cso.ie/table/HPA10).
The data are broken down by NACE classification of the purchasers, i.e. construction, real estate, financial and insurance, public/education/health. Though not not broken down further, the finance and insurance classification includes banks, trusts, pension and insurance funds, and holding companies.
34. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage when he will commence the delivery of affordable housing projects across County Donegal. [11848/25]
View answerAffordability and the chance to own a home is at the heart of the Government’s housing policy. As detailed under Housing for All, the Government plans to deliver 54,000 affordable homes, including 36,000 affordable purchase and 18,000 cost rental homes, by 2030. A comprehensive implementation strategy is in place to support the various affordable housing schemes now being delivered by a range of delivery partners.
All local authorities, including Donegal County Council, have developed and published their Housing Delivery Action Plans setting out their plans to deliver social and affordable housing during the period 2022-2026. This follows a comprehensive Housing Needs and Demand Assessment. Each local authority's Action Plan is available on their official website.
The Affordable Housing Fund (AHF) is available to all local authorities to assist towards the cost of developing affordable housing at locations where significant affordability needs have been identified. My Department, the Housing Agency and Housing Delivery Co-ordination Office of the Local Government Management Association continue to be available to assist local authorities in relation to ongoing development of their affordable housing delivery programmes.
In addition, the First Home Scheme supports first-time buyers in purchasing new houses and apartments in the private market through the use of an equity share model, similar to that employed in the Local Authority Affordable Purchase Scheme. Further, since September 2023, the First Home Scheme now supports those who wish to build their own home. The scheme is available nationwide and more information can be found on the First Home Scheme website.
Other measures such as the Local Authority Home Loan, the Local Authority Purchase and Renovation Scheme, the Help to Buy Incentive, and the Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant are also available nationwide to help make home ownership more affordable.
35. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will commence a survey to establish the number of defective concrete block homeowners in counties Donegal, Mayo, Sligo, Clare, and Limerick who cannot avail of the defective concrete block grant scheme for financial or other reasons; if he will commence a parallel survey to establish the number of defective concrete block homes in the housing stock of local authorities and approved housing bodies in counties Donegal, Mayo, Sligo, Clare, and Limerick. [11849/25]
View answerAn Implementation Steering Group for the current Defective Concrete Blocks Grant scheme has been in place since 2023. The Group comprises of 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 20 February 2025, with the next meeting scheduled for 3 April 2025.
Furthermore, a sub group of the Implementation Steering Group was established to discuss financial aspects of the scheme and included reps from Engineers Ireland, Insurance Ireland, Banking Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI), Department of Finance, local authorities and Homeowner Action Group Representatives.
Following these engagements my Department made changes to the Schemes administration to allow the earlier release of funds to homeowners and updated guidance to enable homeowners access funding for certain work an at earlier stage issued to local authorities on 24 May 2024.
The 2021 Memo for Government contained an estimate of the number of social homes (1,000 dwellings) that may be impacted by Defective Concrete Blocks. Section 36 of the DCB Act of 2022 allows the introduction a Scheme to apply to social homes owned by local authorities and AHBs affected by defective blocks. My Department has been liaising closely with these bodies on developing a scheme and it is my intention to bring proposals to Government in the near future. Upon roll out of the social homes scheme, local authorities and AHBs will provide more up to date data to my Department.
36. Deputy Seán Fleming asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the action he is taking to ensure that additional land is zoned for housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12680/25]
View answer64. Deputy Pat the Cope Gallagher asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his plans to increase the quantum of zoned and serviced land to accommodate new homes through the implementation of a revised National Planning Framework. [12722/25]
View answer96. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage when he envisions the publication of the review into the National Planning Framework; the measures he is considering to increase the amount of zoned land nationally; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12397/25]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 36, 64 and 96 together.
The National Planning Framework (NPF) (2018), together with the National Development Plan 2021 (NDP), combine to form Project Ireland 2040, the overarching planning and investment framework for the social, economic and cultural development of Ireland.
The NPF sets out high-level national policies and objectives, which are essential to achieving proper planning and sustainable development, with a clear vision to guide future development and investment decisions. The strategy sets out the spatial planning policy approach to accommodating projected population growth to 2040 in a manner which delivers balanced regional development, based on a city-focused and compact growth pattern of development that will reverse the patterns of sprawl that have been a feature over recent decades.
In 2023, Government approved the commencement of the process of revising the current NPF, and a Draft Revised NPF was published for public consultation in July 2024. The Draft Revised NPF sets out a need to plan for the delivery of approximately 50,000 additional homes per annum every year to 2040.
In order to finalise the Revision of the National Planning Framework, Government will be required to approve a final Revised NPF following the conclusion of the environmental assessments in the coming weeks. Further to the approval by Government, the final draft will then be submitted to the Houses of the Oireachtas for final approval.
Further to the finalisation of the Revision process, a key next step is to address the spatial distribution of housing needs through updated planned housing requirements on a local authority by local authority basis. The zoning of land for particular purposes, including housing, is an exercise undertaken by planning authorities as part of their overall statutory plan function generally as part of a development plan under sections 9 to 13 of the Planning and Development Act, 2000 (as amended), but can at present also be carried out as part of a local area plan (LAP) process. The making of a development plan or an LAP is a reserved function of the elected members of each authority.
In preparing their statutory plans, including in relation to the zoning of land for particular purposes, the elected members are required to consider and be consistent with, the established statutory national and regional planning policy and legislation, including as identified in the National Planning Framework, Regional Spatial and Economic Strategies and relevant Ministerial planning guidelines.
The key next step further to the finalisation of the NPF Revision is to address, through the issuing of further policy direction by the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, the spatial distribution of the housing requirement by local authority area through the provision of updated planned housing requirements on a local authority by local authority basis, that will also ensure that more land is zoned than will actually be required in order to ensure competition and choice in the land market.
This will enable local authorities to zone more land for housing purposes and will also enable strategic planning for Transport Orientated Development opportunities in and around Ireland’s five Cities to support the delivery of new sustainable communities at brownfield and greenfield locations along existing or planned high capacity public transport corridors.
37. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his plans to address the shortcomings of the enhanced defective block grant scheme which continue to have a significant impact on those affected by the defective block crisis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12538/25]
View answerAs the Deputy is aware the Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Act 2022 (the Act) commenced on 22 June 2023 which contains the current grant scheme and the related Regulations were adopted on 29 June 2023.
In October 2024 the Scheme Cap was increased by 10% to €462,000 and an increase in the scheme rates of between 7.4% and 8.7% was approved on 7 November, 2024.
In November 2024 following the receipt of preliminary results from scientific research in Donegal my Department announced changes to the way the scheme works for certain homeowners. All homeowners who have been given a non-demolition option (options 2 to 5) will now be offered a choice of continuing with the work on their dwelling under the option determined or the option of a full technical review of their application by the Housing Agency. This review will be informed by the current research once the full review of the national standard (I.S. 465:2018) is complete.
As Ireland’s official Standards Body, the National Standards Authority Ireland (NSAI) has been tasked with the review of I.S. 465. I understand that the NSAI intend to go out to public consultation on a revised standard shortly and that this will help to inform the completion of the review process as soon as is practicable thereafter in line with the normal procedures followed by the Authority.
Furthermore, under section 51 of the Act, I am required, as Minister, to commence a review of the operation of the Act within three months of the completion of any review of I.S. 465:2018 by the NSAI. A report to each House of the Oireachtas of the findings and conclusions resulting from that review is required not later than three months after the completion of the review.
38. Deputy Naoise Ó Cearúil asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his plans to require local authorities to facilitate a pre-planning meeting for every new significant residential, community and infrastructural development above a set threshold; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12726/25]
View answerUnder the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended (the Act of 2000) prior to making applications for planning permission for certain types of development the prospective applicant is required to engage in pre-application consultation with the relevant planning authority or An Bord Pleanála (the Board) as appropriate.
In relation to residential development, Large scale Residential Developments (LRD) are developments of greater than 100 residential units or 200 student bed spaces. Under section 32B of the Act of 2000 prospective applicants for LRD are required to hold pre-application consultations (in accordance with section 247 of the Act of 2000) with the relevant planning authority prior to requesting a LRD meeting and prior to lodging any LRD application for planning permission.
Strategic Infrastructural Developments (SID) are set out in the Seventh Schedule of the Act of 2000 and applications for SID are made directly to the Board. Prior to making an application for SID, a prospective applicant must comply with section 37B of the Act of 2000 and enter into consultations with the Board in relation to the proposed development.
The Act of 2000 remains in effect whilst the relevant provisions of the Planning and Development Act 2024 (the Act of 2024) are yet to be commenced. Once commenced, provisions for LRD under section 89 of the Act of 2024 and for "Chapter 4 development" which includes SID under section 116 of the Act of 2024 requires that prospective applicants enter into pre-application consultation with the relevant planning authority or An Coimisiún Pleanála as appropriate. These provisions will continue the current requirements for pre-application consultation for LRD and SID. Additionally, under section 89(1) of the Act of 2024, once commenced, the Minister may prescribe where appropriate, other development types which would require a prospective applicant to engage in pre-application consultations with the relevant planning authority.
39. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage when communication to the councils can be expected as to when the tenant in situ scheme will reopen, along with the eligibility criteria; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12406/25]
View answer53. Deputy Aidan Farrelly asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his plans to further review the eligibility and funding for the tenant in situ scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12937/25]
View answer78. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will abolish the restrictions on the tenant in situ scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12671/25]
View answer81. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to provide an update on the second-hand acquisitions programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12878/25]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 39, 53, 78 and 81 together.
Tenant in Situ Acquisitions were introduced by way of Government decision in 2023 as a short term response to the reported uplift in sales by landlords of homes which were within the HAP and RAS schemes in order to prevent potential homelessness where other solutions could not be found for the affected tenants.
A further Government decision extended such acquisitions into 2024 with approval granted for 1,300 Tenant in Situ acquisitions in addition to the 200 priority acquisitions target for 2024 contained in Housing for All.
Tenant in Situ acquisitions have been an important measure in the prevention of homelessness since their introduction in 2023. Government has therefore agreed to continue such acquisitions in 2025.
My Department has notified local authorities on the extension of the second hand acquisitions programme and a circular setting out the arrangements will issue shortly. In the interim, my Department has been updating local authorities during individual engagements and plenary discussions. These engagements help provide clarity and ensure consistency across the sector.
The introduction of additional eligibility criteria for acquisitions in 2025 is to ensure that priority categories such as tenant in situ, older persons, disabled persons and exits from homelessness can benefit in an equitable manner and provide flexibility to local authorities under the second hand acquisitions programme.
Under revised arrangements for 2025 local authorities will receive a capital funding allocation for the acquisition of homes for priority categories; tenant in situ, elderly and disabled persons, exits from homelessness and Buy and Renew acquisitions which tackle vacancy. The provision of a capital funding allocation will help promote best practice in obtaining value for money and provide local authorities with the flexibility to respond to needs and priorities locally within the categories of need being prioritised.
Tenant in situ acquisitions continue to be supported and prioritised where other solutions cannot be found for the affected tenants. The arrangements for 2025 will ensure a more targeted and focused acquisitions programme.
Local authorities take appropriate steps to ensure that their first response will be to support households to prevent homelessness in cases where tenants have been served with a notice of termination by their landlord. A local authority will assess the options available in each case and decide the appropriate action.
40. Deputy Séamus McGrath asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will review the income eligibility rule for social housing support, which assesses income over an average of the past 12 months, as discretion should be allowed to account for significant changes to income, such as the loss of a job or a medical issue. [12533/25]
View answerThe Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011, as amended, prescribe maximum net income limits for each local authority, in different bands according to the area concerned, with income being defined and assessed according to a standard Household Means Policy (HMP). It was revised in March 2021 and comprehensive guidance was provided to local authorities at the time.
Social housing is a long-term support intended to support households that have continuing, long-term difficulty meeting their own accommodation needs. This is reflected in the underpinning legislation and the HMP which provides for applicants’ eligibility to be assessed on their net average income over the previous 12 months from the date of their application. It provides a truer picture of long-term need and is an objectively fairer approach than assessing such need against more recent changes in circumstances, including loss of employment or significant changes in income. This also ensures fairness and equity in the system and that those with a continuing long-term need are prioritised. I currently have no plans to amend the requirement to assess household social housing income eligibility on the previous 12 months net average income.
Rent Supplement is a short-term income support for people in the private rented sector. If there has been a recent change in a households circumstance and the household requires short term support with their rent, it is open to them to make application for rent supplement. It remains open to that household to apply for social housing support at any stage, subject to meeting the eligibility and need criteria at the point at which they apply.
41. Deputy Erin McGreehan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage when he plans to update the 2005 sustainable rural housing planning guidelines; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12530/25]
View answer47. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage for an update on proposed new rural planning guidelines; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12408/25]
View answer54. Deputy Aindrias Moynihan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage for his plans to support rural housing in the mid Cork region; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12872/25]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 41, 47 and 54 together.
Since the publication of the current Sustainable Rural Housing Guidelines in 2005 (which continue to have effect in addition to subsequent clarifications and national policy changes in the NPF published in 2018) there have been important changes to our planning system. Most notably, obligations under European Directives and international agreements relating to the management and protection of the environment and adapting to and mitigating climate change have become more central to the operation of the system.
Updated Rural Housing Guidelines are currently being considered by my Department. The updated guidelines will expand on the high level spatial planning policy of the National Planning Framework (NPF), in particular on National Policy Objective (NPO) 19 which relates to rural housing. This objective makes a clear policy distinction between rural areas under urban influence (i.e. areas within the commuter catchment of cities, towns and centres of employment) on the one hand, and structurally weaker rural areas where population levels may be low or declining, on the other. NPO 19 is also aligned with the established approach whereby considerations of social or economic need are to be applied by planning authorities in rural areas under urban influence.
The draft Rural Housing Guidelines will set out relevant planning criteria to be applied in local authority development plans for rural housing, based on the high level policy framework set by the NPF. The guidelines will continue to allow county development plans to provide for housing in the countryside based on the considerations detailed in NPO 19 of the NPF, and will also highlight the need to manage development in certain areas, such as the areas around cities and larger towns and environmentally sensitive areas, in order to avoid over-development.
While planning policy is a national, as opposed to an EU competence, due care is being taken to ensure the updated guidelines will not operate to conflict with fundamental EU freedoms, comply with EU environmental legislative requirements and have due regard to decisions of the European Court of Justice. The draft planning guidelines will address these complex environmental and legal issues, while also providing a framework for the sustainable management of housing in rural areas.
To ensure compliance with all of these considerations, the Guidelines will need to be subject to environmental assessment and legal review, following which it is intended that they will be published for a period of public consultation.
42. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage whether the town centre first model will be applied to suburban villages in Dublin west. [12026/25]
View answer‘Town Centre First – A Policy Approach for Irish Towns’ was launched in February 2022 as a joint initiative of my Department and the Department of Rural and Community Development (DRCD). Town Centre First (TCF) supports a more strategic and co-ordinated approach to the regeneration of Ireland’s urban areas. It includes a particular focus on measures to tackle vacancy and dereliction, to create more vibrant and viable places, through greater occupancy for residential purposes and to encourage more business and footfall.
The Town Centre First policy sets out an innovative approach, where local communities and local businesses, working with local authorities, can be central to re-imagining their own towns and planning their own futures. Every town is different and, therefore, the policy acknowledges that there is no one-size-fits-all approach that will work. By recognising and supporting this diversity, the policy can deliver outcomes tailored to the unique and individual needs of our towns.
The Town Centre First policy is focused, therefore, on supporting members of the local community in forming a town team to take action to develop and regenerate their town. The town teams are drawn from local residents, business people, community representatives and others, all united by a shared will to improve the place in which they live and work for the benefit of residents and visitors alike. The town team has a unique position in the community as the local experts on their area and will be empowered and supported to take a lead on the development of interventions that can make positive long-term changes for their town.
The Town Centre First policy tasks the town team with preparing a Town Centre First plan. These are non-statutory plans that will identify challenges, actions and integrated responses across a number of themes, including business-commercial, community-cultural, housing, built environment and heritage. The Town Centre First plans will serve to maximise the impact of investment from a range of funding streams available for town regeneration across a number of Departments and agencies.
The Town Centre First policy recognises the critical role the local government sector will have in co-ordinating and driving regeneration locally and in accessing the funding streams that will enable development initiatives to be realised. Local authorities are well positioned to work with their local communities in formulating specific actions at a local level in order that proposals are firmly based on local knowledge in combination with technical support and concrete delivery measures.
The Town Centre First policy is primarily aimed at towns of varying sizes that are part of the network of settlements across Ireland. Villages located as part of the suburbs of larger city areas are generally integrated into the statutory development plan of the local authority with specific zonings, development policies and objectives which will address many of the issues that a TCF Plan might seek to include. Accordingly, Section 6.4 of the TCF policy details the relationship of Town Centre First with statutory development plans and local area plans.
Local authorities often incorporate the principles of the TCF model – community participation, local action formulation and project identification - into their planning and development activities in city and suburban areas. Such approaches provide a solid basis for local communities to seek funding for local development projects through the range of schemes available including the Urban Regeneration & Development Fund, Smarter Travel, Historic Structures Fund, Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme, and the Community Sport Facilities Fund.
43. Deputy John Lahart asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage If there are plans to increase funding for the housing adaptation grant for council tenants who require urgent home adaptations to make their living conditions more suitable to their needs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12941/25]
View answerMy Department provides funding to local authorities under the Disabled Persons Grants scheme to carry out works on social housing stock, to address the needs of older people, people with a disability or overcrowded situations. Typical works include adaptations such as stair-lifts, level deck showers, ramps and grab rails, widening door opening widths and improving circulation spaces. Extensions to provide for ground floor bathrooms and bedrooms can also be supported.
Under the delegated sanction currently in place, the maximum cost of works in each individual case should not exceed €75,000 and my Department funds 90% of the cost of eligible works. Where the total cost of works to a property is projected to exceed €75,000 and additional funding is sought by the local authority, prior approval from my Department is required.
Funding is also made available to improve or extend privately owned housing to approved applicants for social housing as an alternative to local authority housing (Improvement Works in Lieu of social housing (IWIL’s).
My Department's approach every year, in the first instance, is to allow local authorities complete works up to 65% of the previous year’s allocation in the absence of formal approval to keep this important work going.
Following this and based on the actual need of the sector, my Department issues a single full year allocation to each local authority, so they can plan, prioritise and implement the programme to carry out the varying works necessary to meet the needs of their tenants in this year.
Local authorities can apply for additional funding for emergency cases as they arise throughout the year and furthermore, my Department will make every effort to accede to any further requests for additional funding this year.
The detailed administration of this scheme including assessment, approval and prioritisation of applications is the responsibility of local authorities.
44. Deputy Conor Sheehan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage for a timeline and action plan for meeting the targets to work towards ending homelessness, as agreed in the Lisbon Declaration; the additional policy measures he intends to take; if he will consider amending the Housing Act 1988 to oblige local authorities to take into account the best interests of a homeless child, as outlined in the Housing (Homeless Families) Bill 2017; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12699/25]
View answer75. Deputy Cathy Bennett asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he intends to meet the target of the Lisbon Declaration on the European Platform on Combatting Homelessness to end homelessness by 2030; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12938/25]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 44 and 75 together.
Addressing homelessness is a key Government priority. Ireland signed the Lisbon Declaration in June 2021, which committed all signatories to work towards ending homelessness by 2030. The Government reaffirmed Ireland’s commitment to the Lisbon Declaration in the Programme for Government.
Housing for All, which was published in 2021, contains a suite of actions that have, and continue to, increase the provision of housing through accelerating supply and increasing the affordability of homes for our citizens. The Plan also includes a range of measures to address homelessness. The new Programme for Government includes additional measures which the Government will take to address homelessness. This includes developing and Cross Government Prevention Framework and reforming the legislative framework. Any proposed changes to the legislation will be brought before the Houses of the Oireachtas in line with the normal legislative process.
Funding of €303 million is available for the delivery of homeless services in 2025. This funding supports the provision of emergency accommodation and wrap around supports. In addition, capital funding of €25m will support the delivery of high quality transitional and emergency accommodation for individuals experiencing homelessness. A key focus of local authorities and their service delivery partners is to support households experiencing emergency accommodation to exit emergency accommodation to a tenancy.
Critical to addressing homelessness is increasing the supply of housing. The overall capital funding available for housing in 2025 is now over €6.5 billion, to support the delivery of social, affordable and cost rental homes. Housing supply has increased significantly since the publication of Housing for All in 2021. In particular, 22,192 social homes have been delivered through Build, Acquisition and Leasing schemes in 2022 and 2023. The delivery figure for 2024 is currently being collated. This increased supply of social housing is supporting the increased allocation of homes to households on the social housing waiting list, including households in emergency accommodation.
45. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the action he proposes to take regarding research received by his Department from the Housing Agency on Social Housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12686/25]
View answer63. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his plans to review current income eligibility thresholds for social housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12685/25]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 45 and 63 together.
Housing for All includes a commitment to review income eligibility for social housing. From this review, completed in November 2021, it was recommended moving five local authorities from Band 3 to Band 2, ensuring the income eligibility thresholds better reflect housing costs in those counties. Government also agreed to increase the baseline income thresholds by €5,000 for all local authorities with effect from 1 January 2023. The thresholds thus increased to €40,000, €35,000 and €30,000 for bands 1, 2 and 3 respectively.
The review further recommended the commissioning of research to develop options for a revised or new social housing income eligibility model. My Department received this detailed research, commissioned by the Housing Agency. The scope of the research included examining the existing income limits in the context of current market and population conditions and the suitability or otherwise of the current framework having regard to the significantly changed landscape since the standardised income limits were introduced.
My Department is now undertaking a detailed examination of the report, in order to develop a new social housing income eligibility model in line with the Housing for All Action Plan update. This detailed examination will include consultation with stakeholders and will look at, inter alia, how the social housing income limits system interacts with other housing supports and ensure that they continue to target households correctly.
48. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage when he will introduce planning guidelines for solar farms in line with the Programme for Government commitment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6405/25]
View answerMy Department notes the commitment in the recently published Programme for Government 2025 – Securing Ireland’s Future to introduce planning guidelines for solar energy developments.
In light of this commitment, my Department has begun an initial scoping process to identify the component factors relevant to the preparation of planning guidelines for solar energy development, including any appropriate environmental reporting and public consultation requirements, and the possible timeframe for publication of said guidelines. Given this scoping process remains at an early stage, such guidelines, once completed, will likely issue as a National Planning Statement, subject to commencement of the relevant provisions of the Planning and Development Act 2024.
In the interim, there are currently no specific planning guidelines in place in respect of solar energy developments. Proposals for individual solar energy developments are subject to the statutory requirements of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, in the same manner as other proposed developments, with planning applications made to the relevant local planning authority, or An Bord Pleanála on appeal.
50. Deputy Rory Hearne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his plans to address the fact more than 88,000 homes are currently vacant, in view of data showing that over 2,000 homes were liable for the vacant property tax; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12898/25]
View answer112. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage for an update on the compulsory purchase order activation programme, given the plight of dereliction in our cities, towns and villages; and the timeline for reform of compulsory purchase order legislation. [12618/25]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 50 and 112 together.
Addressing vacancy and making efficient use of existing housing stock is a key priority for Government, as set out in Pathway 4 of Housing for All.
The Vacant Homes Action Plan, published in January 2023, built on Pathway 4 and set out the various actions that were being pursued to return vacant properties back into use as homes. The Action Plan Progress Report was published in April 2024 and is available here on my Department's website: www.gov.ie/en/publication/df86c-vacant-homes-action-plan-2023-2026/
The next Progress Report will be published in the coming months and will outline what has been achieved in 2024 and the measures planned for 2025.
These reports show the significant progress that has been made in tackling vacancy. In the latest GeoDirectory Residential Buildings Report for Q4 2024, the average vacancy rate across Ireland had dropped to 3.8%, the lowest rate recorded since 2013. While varying levels of vacancy are indicated in the different data sources, the overall trend is downwards and vacancy levels are reducing.
The CPO Activation Programme was launched by my Department in April 2023. It provides for a proactive and systematic approach by local authorities to identifying vacant and derelict properties and engaging with owners to bring those properties back into use. My Department continues to provide support and guidance on the implementation of the Programme to all local authorities.
The new Programme for Government includes a range of commitments to tackle vacancy. It also contains commitments to update and strengthen Compulsory Purchase Order powers. This will be considered by the relevant Departments.
