247. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he has considered legislation to allow social housing tenants whose joint tenant has been abusive to them and there is a safety or protection order in place, to separate their joint tenancy to allow local authorities to provide them with a transfer as a sole applicant; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53786/26]

The Government is fully committed to addressing domestic, sexual and gender-based violence and recognises the critical importance of secure housing for victim/survivors. This is reflected in the national strategy Zero Tolerance (2022–2026) and ongoing work across my Department.

Local authorities assist victims and survivors with both their emergency and long-term housing needs under the Department's "Policy and Procedural Guidance for Housing Authorities in Relation to Assisting Victims of Domestic Violence with Emergency and Long-Term Accommodation Needs", first published in 2017.

This guidance sets out the role local authorities can play in supporting victims and survivors of domestic violence, including assisting existing social housing tenants and working closely with domestic violence services and other agencies. Under those arrangements, local authorities can assess victims as homeless where they are residing in refuges, prioritise cases through their allocation schemes utilising exceptional and emergency allocation provisions, assist households to access HAP and RAS supports, and work with victims who are existing social housing tenants where tenancy issues arise.

These guidelines set out where a victim of domestic violence applies for social housing support in their own right while still a joint tenant, it is a matter for the relevant local authority to address the contractual issues arising in relation to the joint tenancy agreement. Accordingly the household may transfer out of their existing tenancy and into a new tenancy agreement with the housing authority or they may access an independent tenancy in the private rented sector utilising the various housing supports offered by the State.

As part of a broader Government commitment under the third national strategy, a detailed examination of  is underway which commits to reviewing this existing housing guidance to ensure victims can remain in or return to the home where safe and desired, and also to consider whether legislative change is appropriate in the context of joint tenancies.

My Department is working closely with Department of Justice, Cuan and the Courts Service to further these commitments. This work has identified that the dissolution of joint tenancies in domestic violence cases is particularly complex, requiring careful balancing of victim protection, legal rights, and operational feasibility. Progress is being made and I anticipate proposals on potential options will be brought to me, including potential legislative change, for consideration later this year.