Tenant purchase and water charges
Michael Healy-Rae argued the tenant purchase scheme for local authority houses was being undermined by water charge-related rules and exclusions. The housing Minister said liabilities under the Water Services Bill would be extinguished and the tenant purchase scheme review would conclude in the coming weeks, with an announcement expected in December.
There is a serious anomaly in the programme for Government regarding the tenant purchase scheme for local authority houses.
People are told that they must have their water charges paid and a person who does not have their water charges paid cannot retrospectively pay them now - because it will not be accepted - and therefore changes have to be made. I address this to the Taoiseach and to the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government.
Comment on this
It is. The water charges issue was in the programme for Government. It is a very serious point.
Through the tenant purchase scheme the Government is barring more than 80% of the people who live in local authority houses from purchasing those houses because of the statement that they have to be at work. In other words, they cannot be in receipt of an old age pension or a disability payment. That tenant purchase scheme is not fit for purpose and it has to be changed.
Comment on this
If and when the Water Services Bill 2017 concludes in the Seanad this week, all liabilities under that Bill will be extinguished, as per one of the provisions in the Bill. The tenant purchase scheme is under review and we will, hopefully, conclude the review in the next couple of weeks and I hope to make an announcement on that in December.