asked the Minister for the Environment the date of operation of a new tenant purchase scheme to replace the scheme which expired on 10 July 1983; and the conditions of this scheme.

27.

asked the Minister for the Environment the date of any new differential scheme which he intends to inaugurate.

36.

asked the Minister for the Environment if he will make a statement regarding any proposals there may be for a new sales scheme of local authority dwellings in the ownership of Dublin Corporation.

37.

asked the Minister for the Environment the reason he breached the agreement with the National Association of Tenant Organisations, which had been honoured by successive Governments since the early seventies, and which recognised NATO as the national negotiating body for local authority tenants, and if he will reopen negotiations with NATO, without precondition, on a review of the differential rents scheme.

40.

asked the Minister for the Environment if he will restore the recognition of the right of the National Association of Tennants' Organisation as a representative negotiating body for local authority tenants; and if he will agree to the continuation of a national differential rent scheme.

49.

asked the Minister for the Environment if he is aware of the widespread indignation which exists among local authority tenants concerning his proposal to increase differental rents and impose a new house purchase scheme, without the approval of NATO; if he will now withdraw such proposals, pending talks with the representatives of NATO; if he will restore the negotiating licence which this National Organisation of Tenants possessed in accordance with the 1974 agreement with his predecessor; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

I propose to take Questions Nos. 16, 27, 36, 37, 40 and 49 together.

Number 40 is one of the Priority Questions in relation to the operation of the differential rents scheme.

There is a rule about this. It is an order of the House.

Would it be in order for me to defer all of these questions? It is immaterial to me.

The House made an Order that in a situation like this the questions should be taken together.

I introduced a purchase scheme for local authority dwellings on 30 July 1986. The new scheme is generally similar to previous schemes but incorporates the new feature of allowing market value to be used in determining sale prices where this is more favourable to the tenants than the formula sale price. This change had been requested for some time by NATO.

On 14 August 1986 I notified housing authorities of the Government's decision to return to them the responsibility for rent schemes for their dwellings as a further stage in the devolution of a wider range of functions to local authorities. The determination of rents for their dwellings is a function which naturally complements the responsibility of local authorities for the maintenance and management of their housing stock. Any revised schemes introduced by housing authorities must be income related, with allowances for children, and special provision for hardship cases.

There is no change in the status of NATO as the national representative body for local authority tenants. Their views were expressed at the series of meetings held to discuss the tenant purchase and rent schemes and were taken into account in the decisions made.

I compliment the Minister on the decision to include market value for the operation of the purchase scheme. It was a major step forward. I will concentrate on the element of question No. 40. Is the Minister seriously suggesting to this House that devolution of powers could be the terms used to describe a situation where the Minister gives the power to city and county managers to review local authority rents where the local authority members have absolutely no say in the matter.

As the Deputy will know quite a number of the functions of local authorities are executed statutorily by the county manager. A minority of the functions are known to the elected members as reserved functions. One would expect, and I understand that it is happening in practice, that managers would discuss with their elected local authorities the provisions of any new rents scheme or any changes in the scheme so as to get the benefit of the advice, the experience and the understanding of the local authority members before any changes are brought about in rents schemes. I consider the decision which was taken by the Government to be totally in line with the Government's commitment towards devolution of functions generally.