Results 101-120 of 1,135,302 for in 'Dáil debates' OR in 'Committee meetings' (speaker:Paul Gavan OR speaker:Hildegarde Naughton OR speaker:Kieran O'Donnell OR speaker:Seán Canney OR speaker:Seán Fleming OR speaker:Seán Sherlock OR speaker:Francis Noel Duffy OR speaker:Richard Bruton OR speaker:Richard Bruton6 OR speaker:Leo Varadkar OR speaker:Brendan Griffin OR speaker:Sorca Clarke OR speaker:Marc Ó Cathasaigh OR speaker:Violet-Anne Wynne OR speaker:Colm Burke OR speaker:Patrick Costello OR speaker:Catherine Murphy OR speaker:Maurice Quinlivan OR speaker:John Lahart OR speaker:Bríd Smith OR speaker:Gino Kenny OR speaker:Joe Flaherty OR speaker:Niall Collins OR speaker:Joe O'Brien OR speaker:Mattie McGrath OR speaker:Holly Cairns OR speaker:Steven Matthews)

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: Yes. That verbatim description was set out in the 2019 Act. What change has there been? Has somebody suddenly noticed that some AHBs have activities other than the provision of housing and now fall foul of the Act? Is that generally where we are at?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: It sounds like a sensible amendment to make to overcome the obstacle. I just wanted to be clear that that was Dr. McManus’s take as well. It is what we had in our briefing from the Department. We have been very much behind regarding cost-rental housing for many years. It has been central to Green Party housing policy for many years. We met our Austrian colleagues prior to the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: I agree with that. I have roughly totted up the figures and noted there are to be around 4,000 cost-rental homes produced in the next three years by the AHB sector. I am aware that the LDA also has set a target. The more we see, the more people will become aware that the option is available to them. The 40-year timeline is in the legislation, the Affordable Housing Act. Is the period...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: Is 40 years a term in lending that cannot be gone beyond, even with mortgages for private property? If the period were extended to 45 years or 50 years, it would reduce the monthly rent, but would an extension of this kind add to the cost overall?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: Cost-rental eligibility is within an income bracket here. When I was talking to the Austrian Greens, they said it was a much wider income bracket, so there is a much greater mix of different occupations and people at different stages in their lives. Again, it is new and in the development stage. Obviously we can aspire to broader and greater production of cost rental. My time is up. I...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: I wish to make one point and then I will bring in Deputy Gould. It was kind of in my line of questioning previously and it was mentioned in the opening statements. We are moving to ultra-efficient buildings, like the passive house standard almost or like how Shanganagh Castle Estate was constructed. Conventionally, you would have looked at one third of the income as being pitched around...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: We will have to allow representatives from the local authorities to come in to answer that question. It is unfair to-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: I thank Deputy Gould.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: I thank the Deputy. I have just one question and then I will go back to him.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: When AHBs engage with local authorities and partner up with them, sometimes a local authority will provide the land and an AHB will do the construction. Where is the decision made on to day these 46 units, for example, will be AHB or cost-rental properties? Does the housing need and demand assessment team negotiate that with the local authorities by indicating what the demand is and the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: There was a recent Government-produced report on the total costs in construction. We have also had good engagement with the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland which has been doing a series on costs in construction every couple of years. The costs in the two most recent reports seemed to align quite closely. Is the Housing Alliance in agreement that that is generally the cost of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: That is depending on the site. It could be much higher, as different sites incur different costs for preparation development, etc.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: The figure we were seeing in those SCSI reports was approximately €400,000 and something for total cost of construction.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: This is a discussion for another day and I do not expect Mr. O'Gorman to be able to crack this nut today but most of us across the political spectrum are more or less in agreement on the number of housing units that need to be produced over the next number of years, whether new builds or refurbishments. How do we make something affordable that costs a lot of money to make? That is the crux...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: Explain that to me. Both the gearing and changing the funding mix.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: To go back to cost rentals, that is having an impact on the level at which the witnesses must set rent. Is the point that this is a more expensive model for the bodies?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: I will leave the final slot to Deputy Ó Broin and we will finish in nine minutes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: Thank you, Deputy Ó Broin. I thank you all for your attendance here today. I found it very helpful. We will now suspend the meeting for five minutes to allow the witnesses to leave and to allow the witnesses for the next session to prepare.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: Good afternoon everybody. You are all very welcome back to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage. We are resuming the discussion on the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No. 2) Bill 2024. We are joined by officials from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. I welcome: Mr. Vinny Colgan, from the AHB policy and agency governance...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Bill 2024: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Steven Matthews: They might not have to look at us much longer.