Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 7 Dec 2023

As the Minister of State knows, we have all been watching events unfold at the Peter McVerry Trust with a level of real seriousness for the many people who depend on that service and the service itself. I understand a significant amount of work has been going on in the background and an agreement was reached for a financial support package at Cabinet last week. Will the Minister of State make a statement on the matter?

I thank the Deputy. The Department’s role regarding homelessness involves the provision of a national framework of policy, legislation and funding to underpin the role of local authorities in addressing homelessness at a local level. Statutory responsibility in the provision of homeless services rests with individual local authorities. The named organisation informed the Dublin Region Homeless Executive, DRHE, and the Department of potential financial issues in the organisation in July 2023. The organisation also advised that it had separately informed the Charities Regulator and the AHB Regulator, AHBRA. The Department and the DRHE formed an oversight group chaired by an independent governance and legal expert to review the financial and governance issues raised and to advise the Minister accordingly. The DRHE also appointed PwC to undertake a review. Preliminary and final reports were provided to the oversight group. Following the oversight group's review of the recommendations from PwC, the Minister received a letter from the chair of the group. Having considered the contents of the chair's letter and the information provided, the Minister's priority was to ensure that the services provided to homeless individuals and families would continue uninterrupted. In this regard, proposals for the provision of funding on an exceptional basis were considered by Government. On 28 November, the Government approved funding on an exceptional basis of up to €15 million to be paid to the named organisation. Funding may be paid between December 2023 and 31 March 2024 on a phased basis, subject to the provision of relevant information. Funding is also conditional on the named organisation complying with a range of conditions related to financial management and governance.

I commend Mr. Francis Doherty, the chief executive at the time, who brought these matters to light at the Department, the DRHE and the appropriate regulators. Unfortunately, for reasons already in the public domain, he resigned a short time afterwards. I also acknowledge the significant role played by the Dublin Region Homeless Executive. I welcome the appointment of the former chief executive of South Dublin County Council, Daniel McLoughlin, who is providing management consultancy services, including the role of interim CEO. I have no doubt he will play a significant role in helping the Government to resolve these problems. It would be helpful if the Minister of State could give us more detail. A lot of information has been in the public domain. I appreciate there are two independent reviews by the Charities Regulator and the AHB Regulatory Authority. I am not looking for the Minister of State to stray into those areas. Initially, we were told a financial support package in the region of €7 million would be needed, then €10 million. If it is €15 million, it is €15 million. I am not disputing or questioning that. Of paramount importance is the security of the services for the people who need them. Additional information on what that €15 million is for and how that figure was arrived at would be welcome.

The Deputy will appreciate it is a difficult time. Our particular concern is for the more than 1,000 users of the Peter McVerry Trust, along with the more than 600 employees and the more than 600 people on the housing first scheme. The trust received €1.1 million on 4 December from the DRHE. It will receive a further €2.8 million by the end of December. It is then required to provide a restructuring plan by the end of January. Ultimately, this is about ensuring that the services are kept in place for service users of the trust, employees and people across the spectrum. That is the up-to-date position as I can provide it.

I welcome the additional information. Responsibility for all of these affairs rests with the Peter McVerry Trust, the failures of its board and its previous chief executive, Pat Doyle. We will deal with responsibility and accountability when the reports from the two regulators are published. There is also a wider policy context. For years, homeless services have been funded through a deficit funding model in which they are not provided with 100% funding for the services they provide. In fact, an issue at the heart of the Peter McVerry Trust is a significant level of underbidding for services, well below the 90% that often is standard in the sector. In addition, the fact the Government requires competitive tendering, it could be argued, incentivises this process of underbidding. As part of the wider review into the funding of homeless services, will the Government give a commitment that it will examine these issues and whether they played any role in the events that transpired? Will it give a commitment to examine reforming these areas for 100% full cost recovery for homeless service providers to ensure the security of services into the future?

The substantive question is about the trust. We want to ensure it is put on a sustainable footing, particularly for service users, staff and their work in delivering homeless services. The restructuring plan must be provided by the end of January. We note the points the Deputy raised on the broader context and will take them on board.

In light of ongoing challenges in our housing sector, will the Minister of State provide an update on the progress and effectiveness of the current strategies implemented by the Department, particularly in the realms of affordable housing provision and homelessness prevention? Will he make a statement on the matter?

Housing for All sets out the range of actions necessary to increase the supply of housing to the required 33,000 homes, on average, per year over the next decade. Some 54,000 affordable homes will be delivered between now and 2030. In the first 18 months of the new programme, more than 3,000 affordable homes have been delivered through our new cost-rental schemes, the first home scheme and the local authority affordable purchase scheme. This momentum will continue as the pipeline of affordable housing delivery is developed and expanded by our delivery partners. In the past month alone, the Minister approved funding of €448 million for more than 1,900 affordable homes in eight local authority areas. This is in addition to the strong pipeline of more than 22,600 social homes either on site or at various stages of design and procurement. Ultimately, increasing housing supply across all tenures is essential in our efforts to prevent homelessness. Housing for All is successfully supporting a significantly increased supply of new homes, with almost 30,000 built in 2022. This represents an increase of 45% on 2021 and 5,250 homes, or 21%, more than the Housing for All target of 24,600.

Furthermore, more than 22,400 homes have been built to the end of September 2023, with the Housing for All targets of 29,000 and 33,450 expected to be met, if not exceeded, in 2023 and 2024 respectively. In commenting on the effectiveness of the Government's Housing for All strategy, it is worth putting on record the latest report from Euroconstruct, an independent construction market forecasting network active in 19 European countries. It notes that construction output in Ireland is forecast to grow at the fastest rate among 19 European countries, expanding by 3.2% this year and 4.4% in 2024. Ireland is bucking the European trends cited in the report with total construction activity in Europe expected to fall by 1.7% in 2023 and 2.1% in 2024. One of the reasons cited for this growth is that the Government is making record State investment available for housing, with €5.1 billion committed to delivering new homes in 2024. The funding being provided, coupled with LDA and HFA investment, is the highest in history and will ensure we can continue to deliver new affordable homes, for purchase and rent, at pace.

I welcome the progress with the Department's housing plans. It unfortunately still falls short of addressing the current chronic housing shortage. The deficiency is leading to high rent demands, most of which are beyond the reach of young families. This has left some parents and relatives with no alternative other than to help their loved ones. For some, the only way to help is to provide a modular dwelling on their property to give their loved ones a roof over their heads. When such circumstances strike, the element of right or wrong becomes an afterthought. They can either risk being harshly penalised by the local authority for permitting such a dwelling, or they can stand by and watch their loved ones become homeless. A family would do anything to avoid seeing a son, daughter or other family member without accommodation. Some months ago, I had a discussion with the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, about the predicament of many genuine people across County Tipperary and north-west County Kilkenny. They have been served with threatening legal letters or enforcements due to the fact that they have a historical unauthorised modular home located on the same grounds as a family home. These people placed the mobile homes as a matter of last resort. In many cases I am aware of exceptional circumstances, which make this absolutely necessary. Will the Minister of State tell me what progress is being made in that regard?

I was not aware of this specific issue with modular developments. My response to his first question was in terms of general delivery. If there are specific cases the Deputy has brought forward to the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, we would appreciate if he could also bring them forward to us. I know there are planning regulations around the development of modular homes. I appreciate some families are in a situation where they are looking at options on their own land for their family members - be it a mobile home or some kind of modular solution. Within the two areas referenced, north-west Kilkenny and Tipperary north, the local authorities are proactive in particular in the development of rural houses and rural construction. From my own local authority in Kilkenny it is not just housing delivery in the scheduled towns or the larger urban centre of Kilkenny city. They are committed to ensuring affordable housing is also delivered in rural areas. If there are specific cases the Deputy wishes to bring to our attention, we would appreciate him bringing them forward.

I will raise that issue again with the Minister, Deputy O'Brien. However, in the context of social housing, I know the Minister of State has mentioned Kilkenny and Tipperary are proactive. How many councils are working to full capacity to deliver social housing and how many have the ability to do more than they are doing? In every system there are those that are good, that are competent and capable, and make the exceptional effort to build houses. From my understanding, some of our councils around the country are lagging behind. What efforts are the Department and officials making to ensure we have a uniform standard of building, in other words that the same effort is being made and the maximum return achieved from the delivery of new council-built social and affordable housing?

All of the local authorities are asked to bring forward their figures for social and affordable housing. They all have yearly targets to achieve. I do not have the deliverability figures before me. Not all local authorities are meeting those targets, but many are. Our Department has also ensured that in planning departments, the additional staff required have been brought forward to help in the delivery of housing. The Department has not been found wanting to ensure local authorities have the financial resources and planning staff at their disposal to ensure the delivery of housing. If there are specific figures we can bring them forward for Tipperary north and north-west Kilkenny. Again, on the specific issues brought forward, if there are families the Deputy has brought forward to the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, he might bring them forward to us again and we can look at them.

As of quarter 2 this year only 123 affordable homes had been delivered through the Government's affordable housing fund, the cost rental equity loan and Project Tosaigh. The quarter 3 figures should have been published some time ago. I believe they are with the Department. Will the Minister of State tell us the quarter 3 figures for those three crucial schemes, which are the affordable housing fund for affordable purchase, the cost rental equity loan for cost rental through approved housing bodies and Project Tosaigh through the Land Development Agency?

Housing for All sets out a range of actions necessary to increase the supply of housing to the required average of 33,000 homes, per year over the next decade. Some 54,000 affordable homes will be delivered between now and 2030, facilitated by local authorities, approved housing bodies, the Land Development Agency and through the first home scheme, which is a strategic partnership between the State and retail banks. In the first 18 months of the new programme, more than 3,000 affordable homes have been delivered, supported by the affordable housing fund, the cost rental equity loan, Project Tosaigh and the first home scheme. This momentum will continue as the pipeline of affordable housing delivery is developed and expanded by our delivery partners, including local authorities, AHBs, the LDA, and the first home scheme. In the past month alone the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, approved funding of €448 million for more than 1,900 affordable homes in eight local authority areas. Data for affordable housing delivery is published quarterly, similar to social housing delivery. This data is published up to the second quarter of 2023, and is available on the Department website. Local authorities are in the process of systematically collating information on the delivery of affordable purchase and cost rental homes in their administrative areas, including returns for AHBs and the LDA, for the third quarter of 2023. This data is currently being verified and I expect my Department will be in a position to report confirmed quarter 3 social, affordable purchase and cost rental housing delivery shortly.

The Minister of State said in his response that more than 3,000 affordable homes have been delivered through four Government housing schemes. That is not true. If he reads the detail of the information on his own website, almost 2,000 of those homes are under the first home scheme - the controversial shared equity loan. However, there is a footnote in that report stating those 1,917 first home loans are approvals only, and not actual purchases. To say, for example, that they are all homes delivered is not true. You need to use the figure on the first home scheme's website, which is the actual homes purchased. At the end of quarter 3 this year, the cumulative total since that scheme opened is 699. That means 1,218 homes have to be deducted from the Minister of State's figure as they have not been delivered. The loans have been approved, and I am not disputing that. However, it is not factually accurate to come to this House and say more than 3,000 affordable homes have been delivered. It is also deeply disappointing that we see continued delays in the publication of the affordable and social housing statistics. They used to be delivered within one month of the end of the quarter. I do not believe they are still being processed, and I would like to at least have a date when they will be available to us.

As I said, the information is being collated and will be brought forward shortly and posted on our website. On the figure of 3,000 affordable homes, more than 770 cost rental homes were delivered by AHBs and local authorities. Some 1,039 affordable purchase homes have to date been advertised by local authorities for homes delivered in 2022, and for delivery this year and next year.

I have other examples. In partnership with Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, the LDA has commenced construction of 597 homes, including 306 cost-rental, 91 affordable purchase and 200 social, at Shanganagh. The LDA has commenced construction on State lands in phase 1 of housing delivery at the site of the former St. Kevin's Hospital in Cork city. That project will deliver 265 homes, made up of 119 affordable purchase, 119 cost-rental and 25 Part V social housing units The first home shared equity scheme was launched on 27 July 2022, with more than 2,500 approvals given under the scheme. There is delivery at scale. I acknowledge the point the Deputy is making but we are delivering homes that are affordable for individuals and families right across the country.

The idea that the very small number of affordable purchase and affordable cost-rental homes that have been delivered over three years is delivery at scale is laughable. The numbers speak for themselves. We had a discussion about this last night. It is very interesting that in his first response, the Minister of State talked about several thousand homes being delivered through the first home scheme. He now accepts that they have not been delivered and people are not living in those homes. They are simply loan approvals. It would be much more honest if he were to report the figure for the number of homes actually purchased, which was only 699 at the end of quarter 3 out of the 2,500 approvals he mentioned. It is really important that we have accurate data.

What is also very concerning is the price of these homes. We are now seeing affordable cost rentals at unaffordable rates of €1,550 a month. In my constituency, affordable purchase homes are now costing between €407,000 and €435,000. That is just insane. Not only is the Minister of State not delivering the homes he promised and misrepresenting the record by referring to approvals rather than purchases, but the homes are not affordable in the first place. I would like to hear his response to that.

I will provide some more examples of affordable purchase homes being made available. Hampton Gardens Close in Balbriggan includes nine one-bedroom apartments and nine two-bedroom ground-floor duplexes costing between €170,000 and €220,000. Hawkes Road in Bishopstown, Cork, has 35 two- and three-bedroom homes for €246,000 to €289,000. At Dun Emer in Lusk, there are two- and three-bedroom homes for €166,000 to €245,000. Bower Hill in Athlone, County Westmeath, has three-bedroom homes costing between €248,000 and €288,000. These homes are within the affordable bracket.

On the overall delivery figures, including for Project Tosaigh, there is intensive engagement on the advancement of a delivery pipeline for 1,855 cost-rental houses and apartments, with an additional pipeline also being explored. The figures I am giving are for actual delivery and future delivery of affordable, cost-rental and Project Tosaigh homes for families.

What the Minister of State left out from that list of figures is the affordable home equity stake the State acquires, which has to be paid back. I am not disputing that the figures given are the prices at the point of purchase but anybody who purchases one of those homes also has to repay the shared equity portion at a future point. They can do that either with a lump sum or on transfer or sale, and there is no interest. It would be much more honest if the Minister of State set out the purchase price and the all-in price. In many of these cases, the affordable housing fund element is significantly higher than what he has said. The worry is that in many areas, we are seeing purchase prices of €307,000 to €350,000 and affordable housing fund equity of €100,00, which will be a really big millstone around any family's neck. It would be much more appropriate to be honest about that.

It is likewise with cost rentals, with rent prices pushing up and up. One of the reasons the Land Development Agency will not borrow any money under its current mandate and is seeking additional ISIF and Exchequer funding is that if it starts to borrow, its cost rents will push up to €16,000, €17,000 and €18,000. A rent of €1,450, €1,500 or €1,550 a month is not affordable cost rental. It needs to be lower. The Minister of State must address the rising level of these rents because they are increasingly unaffordable for the very people for whom the cost-rental provision is meant.

My Department, working with our partners, is looking at all these issues. On 18 July, as the Deputy is aware, the CREL - cost rental equity loan - working group approved additional supports for AHBs to deliver cost-rental homes by increasing funding up to 45% for capital costs. As I mentioned, Project Tosaigh is designed to manage planning permissions and deliver these projects at scale. The Department keeps the schemes under constant review to ensure they remain affordable and there is a strong delivery pipeline right across the country.

I return to the subject of the Galway social housing task force and its report. What engagement has the Minister had with the task force and its chairperson on the housing challenges and difficulties that have been highlighted in Galway, particularly the complete absence of availability of HAP properties locally? I have had a quick glance at the written reply to my question. I would appreciate if the Minister of State would focus on the issues I am raising here.

My Department participates directly in the Galway task force, including in the four meetings that were held this year. Alongside this, we work with local authorities and other agencies on responses to homelessness and we have regular engagements on the delivery of new social and affordable housing. The Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, has personally engaged with all of the chief executives and directors of housing, including at both the Galway councils, most recently at the housing summit on 25 October, with a focus on working to accelerate the delivery of social and affordable housing.

The Minister and I are aware of the challenges around the availability of housing in Galway and the impact for people availing of HAP. Nationally, the use of HAP is benefiting a lot of households, with nearly 4,200 new tenancies created by the end of quarter 2 of 2023, which is an average of 161 new HAP tenancies per week. In that same period to the end of the second quarter, 133 new HAP tenancies were created in Galway city, bringing the total number of active HAP tenancies there to 1,946. The equivalent figures for Galway County Council are 97 new HAP tenancies in the first half of this year, with a total of 1,436 active HAP tenancies. Last year, we gave each local authority discretion to agree to a HAP payment up to 35% above the prescribed maximum rent limit and, for new tenancies, to extend a couple's rate to single-person households.

The overall measures under Housing for All are having positive impacts on housing supply and availability, including the achievement last year of the highest level of construction of new social homes for decades. We intend to surpass that number this year. This supply is key to easing challenges for our citizens in accessing new homes, whether public housing, private supply or rental supply, including with the assistance of HAP. I appreciate that the impact of these measures may not be fully consistent across different areas of the country. For Galway, I see the task force as a support for both local authorities in their work to advance the housing challenges.

There are some positive trends in terms of commencements for all housing in Galway, albeit from a low base. For Galway city, the 2022 full-year figure for new housing commencements was 109. To October this year, commencements had increased to 210. The county commencements are also trending upwards, which is welcome news in terms of new supply.

The Minister of State, Deputy O'Donnell, worked with me to try to get a report produced. Our effort went into just getting a report from a task force that was set up in 2019. The Minister of State then told me he would study the report and come back to me with an analysis of the difficulties. I have read the written answer from the Minister of State, Deputy Noonan, already. Let us look at Galway city, where rents have breached all records and gone up by 12.5%. There are no houses available under HAP. The only game in town is one available property. When Simon Communities of Ireland looked at the city in its three-day snapshot, no properties were available. There are people on the housing waiting list for up to 17 and 18 years. I am not given to exaggeration. On top of that, we have headlines telling us the Galway Harbour Company is about to conclude a deal with the Land Development Agency to build premium housing. There is no mention of public housing and no mention of an overall plan. I would have thought a task force that was set up in 2019 because of the crisis that existed, a crisis that has since become worse, would analyse the situation and come up with solutions.

I have the 2022 report in front of me, which I read through last night. As I mentioned in my reply, we are working from a low base in Galway. The Deputy has raised this issue on more than one occasion in the House. I refer to the targets for Galway city for 2022.

For Galway city, the target was 305, with delivery of 150. The county target was 230, with delivery of 224. The report acknowledges that there were a lot of external pressures in the construction sector and highlights the impact of workload associated with providing accommodation for those arriving in Ireland from Ukraine in 2022. It also notes that the subgroup on homelessness and Traveller homelessness began to work in May on some of the issues that need to be addressed there. There has been significant progress made through the task force, albeit I acknowledge that it was coming from a low base.

I might come back to the Deputy in relation to the Galway Harbour Company in the supplementary. I was not aware of the issue. I know that the Deputy raised it in the Dáil earlier in the week as well. It is something we will look into.

I thank the Minister of State for confirming that he will look at it. It is a real concern to me that 6 acres of public land is being sold in a deal that we know nothing about, including the price, with no commitment to public housing. The task force was set up in 2019, before the Russian invasion of Ukraine. We have had a serious housing crisis in Galway. The task force has become a further layer of bureaucracy that is there to assist the managers in the county and the city to comply with their plans. The county is doing slightly better than the city. The city is not complying with its targets and we have a major housing problem. I would have thought a task force would look at the land we have and determine what public housing can be built on it to balance the market and bring the prices down. Instead of that, we have each area doing its own thing. There is Ceannt Station with assets of land within the city centre. The harbour area, Sandy Road and Headford Road are all operating on their own. There is no city architect, no overall plan, and a huge number of vacancies in the planning department. We have a task force that we have to drag the reports from, and still there is no final report or analysis.

I appreciate that.

On the chapter on future focus, the report states that the task force has been active in its consideration of further improvements to social and affordable housing delivery, including greater use of modular housing, more effective partnerships with AHBs, higher density brownfield development, greater diversity in house and apartment size, greater urgency around the use of infill sites in urban areas and ongoing active liaison with the LDA.

The Deputy referred to a city architect. I think that is a critical role if this is the ambition in terms of its future focus. Galway city, like many other cities, has huge potential for infill development within the urban core. That is where a significant focus of attention should be in the delivery of social and affordable housing. I will take back to the Minister the point made by the Deputy in relation to the development the Galway Harbour Company is involved in. I note the concern that she raised in relation to that.