Questions

1076. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his views on the fact that the majority of local authority housing maintenance expenditure nationally is reactive rather than planned; the steps he is taking to support local authorities to transition to a planned, cyclical maintenance model; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42549/26]

1077. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of local authority dwellings that have been the subject of a stock condition survey to date; the projected date by which such surveys will be completed across the entire social housing stock; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42550/26]

1078. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the status of the rollout of the national housing asset management system being delivered through the Local Government Management Agency; the number of local authorities currently using the system; and when it will be fully operational across all local authorities. [42551/26]

1079. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if local authority owned social housing is subject to the same minimum standards and independent inspection regime as private rented dwellings under the Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations 2019; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42552/26]

1080. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if the average per-unit funding allowance provided under the Voids Programme has been reviewed in the context of construction cost inflation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42553/26]

1081. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the way in which he reconciles the stated policy of transitioning from a reactive voids approach to a planned maintenance approach with the continued operation of the Voids Programme as the principal maintenance funding stream; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42554/26]

1085. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if his Department collects data on the length of time that social housing units remain vacant; the number of local authority dwellings nationally that have been vacant for more than 24 months; and the specific measures available nationally to address dwellings that are long-term vacant due to the scale of refurbishment required. […

1088. Deputy Peter Roche asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the engagement his Department has had with Galway County Council to support them in the purchase of Dunguaire Castle; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42735/26]

1105. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he has considered aligning the adaptation of the ten year county development plans in 2029 to ensure consistent and continuity; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42947/26]

691. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to state the total cost of the development levy and water connection waiver for each year it has been in operation to date; and the number of homes each year for which the waiver has applied with a breakdown by local authority area. [39320/26]

268. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of stock audits undertaken in 2025 and 2026 to date, by county, in tabular form. [38602/26]

165. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage for an update on the work of the Local Democracy Taskforce; when the report will be published; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37503/26]

199. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage when the local government task force report will to be published; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37309/26]

232. Deputy Malcolm Byrne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if as part of his plans for local government reform, he intends to increase the number of councillors and their powers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37478/26]

590. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage when Galway City Council will be given its homeless allocation for 2026; if he will address the increased demand for homeless services in Galway; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36681/26]

602. Deputy Aidan Farrelly asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage further to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 1691 and 1695 of 14 April 2026, the number of new staff sanctioned for hire in Kildare County Council, Kerry County Council, Fingal County Council and Meath County Council in 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025 and of new hires realised in those years. [37139/26]

608. Deputy Jen Cummins asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the plans to reintroduce the financial contribution scheme for local authorities. [37366/26]

616. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will consider making it mandatory for local authority meetings to be live streamed, recorded and published for the public to view; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37466/26]

384. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage whether any formal benchmarking framework exists comparing homelessness service delivery standards across local authorities or homeless regions. [36349/26]

105. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage for Local Government when he will publish the report from the Local Government Taskforce. [35531/26]

673. Deputy Conor Sheehan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage in view of the commitment to 'significant resources in the 2024 Action Plan, to provide a breakdown of the way in which the funding secured in Budget 2025 has been allocated specifically to frontline planning posts in local authorities versus administrative or department-level oversight; and if he will make a statement on the matt…

674. Deputy Conor Sheehan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to provide the latest workforce data for the local government planning sector, specifically identifying the percentage of current senior and executive planners eligible for retirement within the next five years; the way in which the 2024 Action Plan specifically addresses this imminent loss of institutional knowledge; and if he wi…

675. Deputy Conor Sheehan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of planners who have been reassigned or recruited to ACP from local authorities since January 2024; the measures in place to backfill these critical vacancies at the local level, regarding the transition of An Bord Pleanála to An Coimisiún Pleanála (ACP); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34042/26]

158. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the total amounts based on current or latest data, of rent arrears owed by social housing tenants in each local authority area; the number of social housing households that the corresponding rent arrears relate to per each local authority area, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31218/26]

744. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if local authorities are obliged to participate in inter-county/council tenant-in-situ agreements/arrangements; whether they decide that they will only consider the scheme for families/individuals on their own housing waiting lists; if he will provide the guidelines or circular addressing this; and if he will make a stateme…