Questions

672. Deputy Conor Sheehan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to provide an update on the establishment and meeting frequency of the five working groups (details supplied) committed to in the October 2024 Ministerial Action Plan on planning resources; if he will list the specific recommendations these groups have made to date regarding immediate staff shortages in local authorities; and if h…

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]

676. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will provide a list of all capital projects including social and affordable housing, water services, heritage and local authority-led projects funded under the remit of his Department which have been completed on time and within budget in Fingal in each of the past five years, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement …

677. Deputy Micheál Carrigy asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will provide a list of all capital projects including social and affordable housing, water services, heritage and local authority-led projects funded under the remit of his Department which have been completed on time and within budget in Longford in each of the past five years, in tabular form; and if he will make a state…

678. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the research that was carried out by his Department prior to the recent changes to planning regulations for modular homes, specifically in relation to the potential for a loss of privacy for neighbouring homes and residents; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34111/26]

679. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the research that was carried out by his Department prior to the recent changes to planning regulations for modular homes, specifically in relation to the potential impact on the work of local authorities and their county development plans. [34112/26]

680. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the engagement that was had with architects and town planners prior to the recent changes to planning regulations for modular homes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34113/26]

681. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the engagement that was had with senior management within local authorities prior to the recent changes to planning regulations for modular homes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34114/26]

682. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the mechanisms that are in place for local authorities to raise concerns related to recent changes to planning regulations for modular homes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34115/26]

683. Deputy Malcolm Byrne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage further to Parliamentary Question No. 358 of 27 November 2025, for an update on the number of affordable homes being provided in the Wicklow part of the Wicklow-Wexford constituency; to confirm that none of the affordable purchase houses in the Wicklow County Council area referenced were in the Arklow Local Electoral Area and to s…

684. Deputy Malcolm Byrne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage further to Parliamentary Question No. 358 of 27 November 2025, for an update on the number of affordable homes being provided in the Wexford part of the Wicklow-Wexford constituency; and to specifically outline the new affordable homes under construction or that have been provided in the constituency which comprises primarily the …

685. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the protection a small landlord has when a difficult situation arises (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34217/26]

686. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will provide further information on the shared accommodation scheme pilot for young people in Cork City referenced in Delivering Homes, Building Communities 2025-2030 and in the National Youth Homelessness Strategy 2023-2025, including information on the number of young people supported by the scheme since it began; to detail…

687. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the policy framework governing the granting, revocation and review of outdoor seating or street furniture licences by local authorities, including those relating to licensed premises; whether his Department has issued any guidance to local authorities in this regard; and whether he has received any representations concerning the …

688. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of vacant or derelict hotel and guesthouse properties in each county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34354/26]

689. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to provide an update on current guidelines for local authorities installing solar PV on social housing; if local authority tenants are eligible to apply for a grant for these either through their local authority or the SEAI; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34366/26]

690. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if a survey has been done of electricity costs in social housing before and after retrofitting works; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34367/26]

691. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the current average processing times for Section 49 cases within Tailte Éireann; the number of such cases currently on hand categorised by length of time awaiting assessment such as zero to six months, six to12 months, 12 to 18 months, 18 plus months; the reason a case (details supplied) lodged on 24 July 2025 remains at 'awaitin…

692. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he is aware that there can be a significant gap between grants awarded by the local authority and the actual cost of adaptation; if he can outline the supports that are in place for persons who cannot make up the shortfall specifically in the case where an occupational therapist has recommended significant alterations to ensu…

693. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the position regarding any mechanism in place within his Department that allows for civil servants to transfer on secondment to an equivalent role within the European Union, without negatively impacting their pension and other employment rights; his views on the merits of such a scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. …

694. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage when will there be a decision made on the protected disclosure that was submitted by a person (details supplied). [34498/26]

695. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if the National Parks and Wildlife Service have given consideration to acquiring the 1,500-acre land parcel for sale in Aghavannagh, County Wicklow; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34565/26]

696. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage for an update on measures taken by his Department to improve water quality in Ireland, specifically, actions relating to Lady's Lake in Wexford, the Blackwater River and Lough Carra; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34569/26]