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Uisce Éireann is not working for people, why it is not providing the services and infrastructure that are needed to ensure housing is being delivered and, fundamentally, why it is not sufficiently addressing issues of leakage and poor water quality we know exist in respect of drinking water … Ringsend treatment plant. We have capacity problems across the country in terms of the delivery of water and wastewater services and, fundamentally, housing. I do not believe that the Government fully takes on board the extent of the housing emergency we are in. I encourage the Minister

thank Independent Ireland for bringing forward this very important motion today. I want to talk about Kenmare first of all. Two housing applications have been held up for the past number of months. They were asked to get a letter from Irish Water to say that it would … have water to supply the 170 houses to be built. They cannot get the letter from Irish Water. The time is running out and they will have to pull their applications. This is for 170 houses. No house has been built in Kenmare since 2006 some 20 years

very technical Bill but we are talking about safety and this legislation deserves careful consideration and examination by all of us in the House. The changes contained in this Bill are important. The Labour Party is broadly supportive of them. The vital work of the Commission for Regulation … majority of the unregulated networks discovered by the CRU in its investigations from 2016 were in small or medium apartment blocks or housing estates. Housing developers may remain keen to put in place LPG networks if given the chance. Given the well-documented shortage of serviced land that

thank the Members of the House for their contributions to the debate today and I look forward to their support as this Bill is further considered on Committee Stage. The range of measures that we have developed to address the problems caused by vaping are the result … team. It will be drafted by the end of the month and, subject to Cabinet approval, will then be ready to enter the Houses. There was also concern about the definition of single-use vapes. The definition used is based on a UK law. That has been worked

also understand why I acknowledge the contribution of Regina Doherty, who is on that committee in the European Parliament. We now have a housing Commissioner and a committee of the Parliament on housing. We do have plans to host an EU housing summit. The jury is still slightly … work across this Dáil to see how we can use the opportunity of having the EU Presidency to really put a focus on housing. Housing is an emergency in Ireland. That is absolutely the case but it is also very interesting when we all engage at a European

BPFI, it has really engaged with it and included other organisations such as Insurance Ireland, valuers and so on. The Department of housing has refused to engage with them, which is ridiculous, to tell the truth. They should be part of the working group, as should other Departments … These are very serious people who are working through issues like the mortgageability of houses. Houses remediated through the existing scheme are not mortgageable because the authorities will not sign off on them. The group made up of the parties I have referred to has made a submission

lifted was the tenant in situ scheme. Everyone acknowledges the tenant in situ scheme has been a very effective homeless prevention measure. The housing committee had very important presentations, which I hope the Minister of State will look at, from Focus Ireland and the Dublin Region Homeless Executive … office has been dealing with the mother. They have had to leave their rental home and are living in the husband’s parents’ house. It is extremely overcrowded with seven people in the house. The eldest daughter sleeps on the couch in the living room. The two sons

commercial property into a permanent home. I also support measures that would make it easier for people to increase the provision of animal housing and exemptions for stand-alone slurry storage, within reason. I caution this by saying we have had a number of issues in Limerick … from the local authority. We really need to resource our planning departments around enforcement. Otherwise, we will end up with more poor quality housing, which is definitely not what we need. We need to conserve our architectural heritage because we have lost many shopfronts and features

young people or anybody who wants to live in them, we must allow them to modernise the inside. I am talking about houses, not iconic buildings. I know of a case where a young couple was allowed to extend onto the back of their house but the front … part was listed. This was a street house. They were made keep the timber. They said they could take down the timber, slab it and put the timber back up again. The costs would be massive. If we keep the front facade, the sash windows and the roofscape

First of all, I wish you, a Cheann Comhairle, all the elected Members, all the staff, everyone involved in this great House and the people who are running it all the very best for Christmas and the new year. I welcome the exemption for the change … place, but if it is being regularised, that is all the better. I also welcome the increase in the provision of animal housing under class 6 of Part 3 of Schedule 2 by 50% from 200 sq. m to 300 sq. m and the increase in the total

Minister about Ballypadeen in County Tipperary. I handed him a file on it some weeks ago. They are 52 of the finest houses ever constructed in this country and they had full planning permission. For some reason, the county council took issue with them … clandestine deal has now been done behind closed doors. Obviously the council did not win, and it is going to demolish these houses. They are 52 of the finest houses, constructed with mass concrete, insulation, perfect roofs, perfect walls, perfect timber ceilings and timber ceilings upstairs

actions in the recently published housing plan is that the Department will be publishing quarterly and annual performance tables for new-build output versus targets per local authority, thereby ensuring transparency and accountability. I understand that will commence next June in relation to social housing. We should also … provide similar tables in relation to affordable housing. The local authorities should also be assessed on their output of affordable housing. What actions will the Government take with local authorities that are not meeting their housing targets

Others were injured. The Deputy also referenced the Complex. Deputy O'Rourke spoke about child homelessness. The meeting of the Cabinet subcommittee on housing yesterday was entirely about different aspects of homelessness. We had good presentation of data. The data illustrates that there is a wide variety … issue. An increasing amount of those who leave direct provision end up homeless. Family reunification comes with that. The link between migration and housing has grown, but is not the only factor. Family separation is a factor. Different factors give rise to homelessness, and specifically child homelessness

that persistent misbehaviour and so on should mean you lose the tenancy. That is what should happen. It is hard. We know of housing estates that have awful tensions, difficulties and challenges. I would be glad to work with the Deputy on the issue. I will talk … Minister about it. Deputy Quaide spoke about the thousands of houses that have been left lying idle. We give responsibilities to the local authorities. Deputy Connolly talked about league tables. There is a league table showing which local authorities did what in respect of derelict sites

schemes including the free contraception scheme. There have also been women’s health initiatives and the abolition of inpatient charges for public patients. Housing has seen a strong ramp-up in delivery on both the social and affordable programmes. In 2024, 10,500 new social homes were delivered … continued delivery pipeline for 2025 and future years. A total of €9.7 billion in funding is being provided this year for the housing, local government and heritage Vote group. This includes close to €6 billion in capital funding. The significant level of capital investment will continue under

being penalised by the local authority because the Bill, for people trying to move home to try to save to get on the housing ladder, has not gone through the House yet. We are going to introduce modular units at the back of houses, which will hopefully come … allow for liveable accommodation. If elderly people said they would move into the modular unit to let the family move into their house, it would not be big enough to accommodate them either because the Government does not have the foresight to allow for a two-bedroom unit

technical piece of legislation that authorises in law all the expenditure that has been agreed by way of Estimates during the year. The House will be aware the passage of the Bill is required to ensure it is possible to make payments in 2026 in respect of services … ongoing critical public services during 2025, with a significant proportion of gross voted current expenditure allocated in the areas of health, housing, social protection, education and justice, all of which provide essential front-line public services. The funding provided this year will support a sustainable delivery of public

have been here for the entire debate. I have heard from the Minister and from all sides of the House. I accept the Minister's explanation that there was a private service, that some pharmacists were giving out a free service and that others were charging … Government with an incorrect charging rate. I accept all of that. However, what she has told the House is an indictment of the Government. It knew this was happening back in September, when it went into negotiations with the pharmacy union. The Government knew the issues with blister

Kenmare has been starved of private housing schemes for almost 20 years, first because we did not have an adequate treatment plant - some €40 million has been spent on that and it is fully operational - and now because we are told that the water supply is not adequate … again that the Government liaise with Uisce Éireann and ensure that the two current planning applications for up to 170 houses that are now in limbo are not refused because of the shortage of water. I would like to ask another thing. Back in the late seventies

will be surveyed. I have people in their 90s who applied in quarter 3 of 2024. They will not be alive when their house is due for a survey. I appreciate the Minister of State's reply, but there is no concrete or time-bound plan. Nothing will … currently waiting for years for essential upgrades and insulation. I cannot understand why we cannot get the surveys done quicker. Not every house needs a heat pump or a new set of windows. Sometimes houses just need insulation. I cannot understand why we cannot deliver insulation upgrades within

school, but we will get over that. In any event, they are most welcome and we will meet them later. The Deputy raised housing. It was interesting, yesterday, when the President of the European Council was here. Uninvited, he raised the issue of housing as a Europe-wide … terms of the European Union. It can be quite helpful to look at directives again and areas that impede the building of houses and infrastructure. The Deputy is very prescient in identifying housing as a Europe-wide issue. We can get added value from how Europe approaches

Sport, online safety, in particular for children and young people, is a top priority for me. However, like many others in the House, I am a parent as well as a politician, so online safety is even important to me as a father. Like so many other important … public policy issues that we discuss in this House, online safety is a complex issue. If we take a step back and think of the technological advances we have made in the past 20 years, we can see how the Internet and digitalisation have helped to improve

opening, operation or occupation of a building; b) a regularisation process for certain works and buildings; c) the conferring on the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the power to make regulations relating to enforcement notices; d) the withdrawal of an enforcement notice; e) the opening … works in certain limited circumstances; f) the issuing of a warning letter; g) the extension of the powers of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to make building regulations; and h) the change of names of certain certificates issued under that Act; and to make other

Opposition and the Government to work together to strengthen our building control system in the decade that I have been in this House, this is not a smart way to proceed. We know this because we have been here before. We had a similar issue with a similar … departmental officials who have been working on this legislation. This is a political charge against the Government for treating the Oireachtas housing committee and the wider Oireachtas with utter disrespect as regards our important role in scrutinising legislation. I am particularly concerned that there is a very real

have completely changed. They are now required to be three times the width of the wall as standard. Standard foundations for a standard house are 1 m wide. We do not want to build something new on top of something old. The criteria for roofing is now completely … different, with different weight loads. If a house went on fire tomorrow, it would have to be rebuilt to today's standards, not those of the 1980s, 1990s or 2000s. When we rebuild houses, we build them to today's standards, the same way as we do under

Deputy Ciarán Ahern asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage when the interim remediation scheme for fire safety defects in apartments and duplexes will come back into effect having seemingly been suspended for procurement law reasons; the number of payments to date that have been made … OMCs via the scheme; whether the Housing Agency is actively contacting OMCs who have already carried out remediation work with a view to reimbursing them; if not, when this will happen; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1377/26

Deputy Maeve O'Connell asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if the prohibition on pet bans in social and AHB housing will be extended to all rental accommodation, with normal wear and tear conditions such as RTB standard being applied to all occupiers such

Deputy Rory Hearne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the new measures for the delivery of age-friendly housing, that are not currently in place, being introduced in 2026; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1627/26

Deputy Rory Hearne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the total funding allocation for social housing acquisitions in 2026; the total funding for acquisitions by local authority; when the allocation will be communicated to each local authority; and if he will make a statement

Deputy Rory Hearne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the deadline for which each local authority will be required to publish its Housing Delivery Action Plan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1629/26

Deputy Rory Hearne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the steps he and his Department are taking to support increased housing delivery by local authorities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1630/26

Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the total number of applications received for affordable purchase homes under all affordable housing schemes administered by each local authority; the number of those applications which met all eligibility requirements; the number of homes available

Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of applicants who met all eligibility criteria for affordable purchase housing but were not offered a home due to demand exceeding supply for each local authority in each of the past three years

Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage whether his Department or local authorities track repeat applications by the same household for affordable purchase housing schemes; if so, the number of unique applicant households, the number of households that applied more than once

Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if data on the length of time or number of application rounds spent in the affordable purchase housing application process by successful applicants is collected or monitored by his Department or by local authorities

Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage whether consideration has been given to the introduction of anonymised unique applicant identifiers for affordable purchase housing schemes in order to better assess repeat application rates, unmet demand, and waiting times across local authorities

Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if comparative data on demand versus supply for affordable purchase housing across local authorities is used by his Department to inform funding allocations, programme design, or future delivery targets; and if so, to provide details

Deputy Michael Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the rationale for limiting eligibility for the vacant property refurbishment grant (including above-the-shop accommodation) to individual applicants only; whether he accepts that this restriction is limiting the scale and pace of delivery of homes … town centres; and if he will outline any plans to extend eligibility to companies, approved housing bodies or small-scale developers. [2147/26

Deputy Michael Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage whether his Department has undertaken any analysis comparing the vacant property refurbishment grant with other housing activation schemes that permit applications from companies or delivery partners; and if he will publish or outline the findings

Deputy Michael Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if a review the operational rules of the vacant property refurbishment grant which is planned in 2026; and whether such a review will specifically examine applicant eligibility with a view to increasing delivery of above … shop and town centre housing. [2152/26

Deputy Tom Brabazon asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage when legislation to support the remediation of apartments and duplexes will be brought before the Houses of the Oireachtas; and when such a scheme will open for applications. [2197/26

Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of people on housing waiting lists in 2025 in each county, in tabular form. [2199/26

Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of social, affordable and cost-rental homes completed in 2025, broken down by local authority; how these figures compare with annual targets set out in Government housing plans; the number of projects delayed

Deputy Mark Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the solutions that are in place for people who are over the income threshold for social housing but under the income threshold for cost rental schemes; and if he will make a statement on the matter

Deputy Maeve O'Connell asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will establish an interim order to prevent families with pets being disaffected in social housing in advance of the enactment of the pet ban legislation; and if he will make a statement

Deputy Maurice Quinlivan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the local authority housing vacancy figures for the year 2025, by county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2509/26

Deputy Maurice Quinlivan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to detail the refurbishment timelines, per county, for bringing vacant local authority housing stock back in to use; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2510/26

Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration his plans for the temporary accommodation provided at a location (details supplied), which was developed to house people from Ukraine; if so, to outline what assessment has been made of the suitability of this site for conversion to social housing once

Emer Currie asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will provide an update on her engagement with the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage in relation to the review of the 2001 planning guidelines for childcare facilities; if she has met with the Minister … Housing, Local Government and Heritage in relation to this matter; the outcome of the meeting; her views on the length of time this review is taking; if she expects the review will be completed in the first half of 2026 or if she can indicate the timeframe

Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health if she has engaged with the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage regarding the potential impact of proposed tenancy reforms (particularly the six-year tenancy requirement) on families participating in the fair deal nursing home loan scheme … accepts that the proposed legislation may create unintended financial hardship for such families; the steps being taken to ensure alignment between health and housing policy; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [2206/26