Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 25 November 2025
538. Deputy Rory Hearne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage when the 2026 funding for the tenant-in-situ scheme will be confirmed by his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [65917/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra539. Deputy Rory Hearne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage when the 2026 funding for local authority acquisitions will be confirmed by his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [65918/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 538 and 539 together.
Tenancy sustainment, or tenant-in-situ, is a priority category under my Department's Second Hand Acquisitions Programme. It is not a scheme, but a policy tool available to local authorities to prevent social housing supported households in the private rented sector from falling into homelessness. It should only be used as a last resort by local authorities when all other options have been exhausted.
More broadly, the Second Hand Acquisitions Programme currently provides funding to local authorities to support acquisitions under four priority categories, including:
• exits from homelessness,
• urgent responses for priority cohorts such as persons with disabilities, older persons, care leavers, &c.,
• tenancy sustainment (tenant in situ), and
• buy and renew tackling vacancy and dereliction.
I expect the local authority allocations for 2026, and funding allocated to the targeted priorities, to be notified to local authorities early next year.
In the meantime, local authorities can enter into commitments for 2026 to a value of up to 30% of their original 2025 acquisitions budget. This allows them commit, pending an agreed programme budget for next year, some €95 million extra in 2025 for acquisitions that will complete and draw down in 2026. This flexibility effectively provides for a multi-annual approach to programme delivery, facilitating local authorities to plan and progress acquisitions from one year to the next with a higher level of certainty vis-à-vis future funding availability.
