Questions

314. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the alternative solutions that are in place for families facing repossession; and who are at risk of eviction when they cannot qualify for the mortgage to rent scheme. [67420/25]

315. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to conduct an immediate review of eligibility criteria for the mortgage to rent scheme to prevent homelessness; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67421/25]

316. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to consider raising the income threshold for the mortgage to rent scheme to €35,000 without delay. [67422/25]

317. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to conduct a full review of the mortgage to rent eligibility criteria and engage with money advice and budgeting service and approved housing bodies to assess demand and impact. [67423/25]

318. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the reasons why Part 4 of the Electoral Reform Act 2022 was recently repealed by the European Union (Political Advertising) Regulations 2025; the substantive differences between the provisions of those Regulations and the previous Part 4 of the 2022 Act; to summarise the interactions he had with Ministerial colleagues or with Europe…

319. Deputy Ann Graves asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the housing supports in place for male victims of domestic violence who owned the family home, continue to pay the mortgage due to the fact children remain in the family home, and had to flee the home due to violence and whose wife was never on the mortgage. [67436/25]

320. Deputy Claire Kerrane asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his plans for affordable housing schemes in County Galway; the location for same and the criteria to apply for said housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67439/25]

321. Deputy Claire Kerrane asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his plans for affordable housing at a location (details supplied); the criteria potential buyers will need to meet to be eligible to purchase; the way in which the process will work; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67440/25]

322. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to provide an update on the planning guidelines for solar farms as detailed in the Programme for Government; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67451/25]

323. Deputy Malcolm Byrne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the type of training provided to staff within his Department in the use of, or understanding of artificial intelligence; if a programme is planned for all staff on their obligations under the EU Artificial Intelligence (AI) Act; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67466/25]

324. Deputy Malcolm Byrne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his Department's current projections on potential slowing of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation; Ireland's preparedness for any potential impacts; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67473/25]

325. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage further to schemes such as the town and village renewal grant, if local authorities may use, or support applicants to use, such schemes to bring vacant or derelict residential units or voids back into productive use;; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67513/25]

326. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to outline all current funding streams, capital supports, and operational supports made available by his Department to local authorities for the purpose of returning vacant or derelict local authority homes to use voids, including approvals, drawdown mechanisms, turnaround targets, and auditing arrangements; and if he will make a s…

327. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if his Department maintains any form of benchmarking, comparative performance assessment, league table, or KPI-based ranking of local authorities in respect of their management of vacant/void social housing units, including turnaround times, cost per unit, and annual throughput; and if such information exists, if he will publish it…

328. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of local authority dwellings classified as void, by each local authority in each of the past five years; the number returned to use annually; the average cost of remediation per dwelling; the mean and median turnaround time; the value of Departmental funding drawn down for this purpose; and if he will make a statement on…

329. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if his Department has examined the feasibility of aligning private-sector vacant property grants with local authority programmes for returning voids to use; and if not, if such alignment will now be considered. [67517/25]

330. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if his Department has carried out any analysis comparing the cost, speed, and long-term maintenance outcomes of returning void social housing units to use versus alternative interventions such as acquisition, leasing, or new build; and if he will publish any such analysis to inform future policy choices. [67518/25]

331. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage when the National Planning Statement for planning for rural housing will be published (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67543/25]

332. Deputy Ryan O'Meara asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage for an update and timeline for publication of the updated wind energy guidelines. [67544/25]

333. Deputy Joanna Byrne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the status of the proposed new fire station in Dunleer, County Louth, in view of funding being redirected towards the firefighter centre of training in Dundalk; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67648/25]

334. Deputy Aisling Dempsey asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the reason there is no financial support for a household wishing to avail of mains water in a town instead of using their own private supply; if this is a more climate friendly and efficient way to help people get their own water; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67650/25]

335. Deputy Pat Buckley asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to consult with Met Éireann to resolve internal conflicts around responsibility to alert the public to potential flood risks and to set up an effective, efficient and clear, publicly available flood forecasting system to allow people in high risk flood zones to take steps to protect their properties and families to the best of their…

336. Deputy Louis O'Hara asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the way in which the equalisation fund for each local authority is calculated; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67683/25]

337. Deputy Louis O'Hara asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the reason for reduction in equalisation funding for Galway County Council for 2026 given the council’s difficult financial position; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67684/25]

338. Deputy Louis O'Hara asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the equalisation funding for the years 2024, 2025 and 2026 for each local authority, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67685/25]