Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 22 January 2026
171. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the reason victims of the defective concrete product scandals are treated so differently by the remediation/redress schemes available to homeowners in the east and west coasts of Ireland; and his plans to change this. [3635/26]
View answerThe Defective Concrete Blocks Grant (DCB) Scheme covers 100% of the costs of the remediation works approved, subject to the grant rates and overall grant cap of €462,000. It is neither a redress nor a compensation scheme, rather it is a grant scheme to enable affected homeowners remediate their homes.
The Pyrite Remediation Scheme relates to dwellings that have been significantly damaged as a result of pyritic heave caused by the swelling of hardcore under ground floor slabs. This scheme, which is also not a redress scheme, aims to repair certain homes affected by significant pyritic damage where the homeowners have no other practicable option.
In contrast, the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme relates to dwellings which are damaged due to the use of defective concrete blocks.
The nature of the damage caused is fundamentally different in both schemes. It is primarily for this reason that different approaches are taken to remediating damage. I am satisfied this is the appropriate course of action in the circumstances.
There is only one remediation option under the Pyrite Scheme and the works are repetitive from home to home, which tend to be clustered.
Under the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme scheme there are five potential remediation options with a bespoke solution potentially required for each affected home.
My Department keeps the DCB Grant Scheme under continuous review through consistent and regular stakeholder engagement. This process has identified changes to the scheme that will make it work better for homeowners. These changes are contained in the Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks (Amendment) Act 2025 - Act No. 20 of 2025 as passed both Houses of the Oireachtas and subsequently signed into law by the President on the 23 December 2025.
