Paul McAuliffe (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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339. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if he will consider allowing council tenants to apply for the housing aid for older persons grant and the disabled persons grants to speed up the process following long delays with local authorities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19430/23]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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My Department provides funding to local authorities under the suite of Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and People with a Disability scheme. The scheme assists eligible applicants living in privately owned homes to make their accommodation more suitable for their needs. The detailed administration of the grants including their assessment, approval and prioritisation, is the responsibility of each local authority.

My Department provides funding separately to local authorities under the Disabled Persons Grants scheme to carry out works on social housing stock to address the needs of older people, people with a disability or overcrowded situations. Each scheme operates independently of the other with Disabled Person Grants applicable to local authority owned homes and the Housing Adaptation Grants available for homes in private ownership.

I am satisfied that the discrete statutory operation of both schemes provides adequately and satisfactorily for grants provision for both private and social housing.

Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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340. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if additional details will be provided on the housing in situ scheme for counties Cavan and Monaghan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19446/23]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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Under Housing for All, the Government will deliver 47,600 new build social homes and 3,500 social homes through long-term leasing in the period 2022-2026. Our clear focus is to increase the stock of social housing through new build projects delivered by local authorities and Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs).

For 2023, the Government has agreed that there will be increased provision for social housing acquisitions and my Department will fund local authorities to acquire up to 1,500 social homes and my Department will keep this number under review. The additional acquisitions will be focused on properties where a tenant in receipt of social housing supports has received a Notice of Termination due to the landlord’s intention to sell the property. My Department issued a circular letter to all local authorities in March, setting out details of these arrangements. I have requested local authority chief executives to be proactive in this area.

Local authorities have delegated sanction to deliver the 1,300 additional acquisitions, subject to those acquisitions being within Acquisition Cost Guidelines issued by the Department. However, my Department will also consider proposals for acquisitions where the cost exceeds the costs set out in the Guidelines. Cavan and Monaghan have an initial allocation to acquire 10 social houses each and this number may be increased if necessary.

My Department publishes comprehensive programme level statistics on a quarterly basis on social housing delivery activity in all local authorities, including information on social housing acquisitions. This data is available until the end of 2022 and is published on the statistics page of my Department’s website at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/collection/6060e-overall-social-housing-provision/.