Questions

451. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of staff in the National Parks and Wildlife Service working full-time on the delivery of offshore wind projects and applications; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35341/25]

452. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will outline the exact role of the National Parks and Wildlife Service in the area of offshore renewable energy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35342/25]

453. Deputy Conor Sheehan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if protections will be added for family home bed and breakfasts not to become commercially rateable properties, allowing them to maintain their family home status and be protected in legislation as non-commercial properties for the purpose of local authority rates, as has been the unofficial position since foundation of the State;…

454. Deputy Ryan O'Meara asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the average processing time for a cessation of turf cutting compensation scheme applications; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35395/25]

455. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to state the number of social homes delivered via buy-and-renew in 2024; and the average cost of the delivery of these units to the Exchequer. [35402/25]

456. Deputy Danny Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage why County Kerry is not included in the affordable housing scheme; if it will be included, and when; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35414/25]

457. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will consider establishing a dedicated scheme as part of budget 2026 for local authorities to access funding for the retrofitting or replacement of substandard historical housing stock, perhaps with a trial in Dún Laoghaire and Dublin city, where older stock is widespread; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3543…

458. Deputy Ryan O'Meara asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he is concerned about the level of access to training available to planners and associated staff in local authorities with regard to the standards and frameworks used in the assessment of biogas plant developments nationally, especially considering a national planning framework would be seen as the typical practice international…

459. Deputy Jen Cummins asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the role of the Land Development Agency in relation to the purchasing of vacant sites and units that have the potential for significant residential development; the arrangements that exist for the purchase of such sites prior to them being placed on the open market in circumstances in which the ownership is under the control of the …

460. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to list all the public services contracts worth €10 million or more, which have been granted by himself or the forerunner for his Department, or other State bodies in the past five years; the value of each contract; the length of term of each; the expiration date of each contract; and whether any contract was discontinued duri…

461. Deputy Peter 'Chap' Cleere asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to examine the cases of persons (details supplied) regarding their application for housing aid for older people grant scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35496/25]

462. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to clarify several queries in regard to rent pressure zones (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35506/25]

463. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if it is the long-term policy of his Department to reclassify further water bodies within Lough Corrib SAC as heavily modified water bodies (HMWBs) under the EU Water Framework Directive in a deliberate manner to undermine the integrity of the SAC for the commercial development of the lake and its tributaries; and if he will mak…

464. Deputy Conor Sheehan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if the transfer of responsibility for OMCs from the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration to his Department will happen before the summer recess; if the regulations concerning sinking funds and service charges will be in place by the end of 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35583/25]

465. Deputy Charles Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if there are any plans to review or increase the current planning exemption threshold for playgrounds, presently set at €127,000, when undertaken by a local authority, to account for rising construction costs and inflation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35603/25]

466. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage further to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 515 and 516 of 25 February 2025 and No. 448 of 25 March 2025, all of which sought basic procurement-related data, including the number of public tenders that came in over, on, or under the awarded value, and the total procurement spend by his Department and its agencies in recent years, the r…

467. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of hectares of land zoned under the residential zoned land tax that is currently undeveloped; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35623/25]

468. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the position regarding the tenant in situ scheme for Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council; the number of houses purchased under this scheme to date; if any future funding is proposed to be allocated to this local authority under this initiative; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35691/25]

469. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if a homeowner (details supplied) who has been approved for a defective concrete blocks grant will retrospectively benefit from the 10% grant increase; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35700/25]

470. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to provide an update on social housing PPP bundles 4, 5, 6 & 7 in the context of the decision by the Minister to not proceed with bundle 3. [35715/25]

471. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he has received a report from the CCMA on the review of section 10; and to provide an update on whether he intends to review the current deficit funding and competitive tendering that is used to award section 10-funded services. [35716/25]

472. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to outline Uisce Éireann’s current borrowing limits; its total borrowings; the source of these borrowings, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35725/25]

473. Deputy Joe Neville asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if his Department has plans to conduct an audit of Waterways Ireland; if so, how long will this take; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35731/25]

474. Deputy Danny Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of vacant residential properties in each county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35736/25]

475. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the amount of funding allocated to the tenant in situ scheme in Fingal for the years 2023 and 2024; and the amount ring-fenced for 2025, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35738/25]