Tag Archives: damage threshold

THE housing minister has been accused of being “obsessed” with curbing funding for homeowners affected by pyrite, while failing to properly pursue those responsible for the crisis. Deputy Michael McNamara said that Minister Darragh O’Brien seemed excessively concerned that homeowners would not profit from the scheme, in cases where they chose to downsize, but was less bothered when it came to properly pursuing the quarries that supplied the defective material.  He added that while the minister had rushed new legislation through the Oireachtas to extend the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme, there was now no sense of urgency in terms of giving access to homeowners in Clare. The Scariff TD spoke to The Champion on foot of a response to a Parliamentary Question (PQ) he tabled to Minister O’Brien. While Deputy McNamara sought “clarification and transparency” in relation to the timeline for access for Clare homeowners, no precise date was provided. The minister’s response stated that work on regulations to …

RESEARCH by the Clare Pyrite Action Group (CPAG) shows that up to 18 housing estates in the county could have defective concrete blocks.  Dr Martina Cleary said that information received by the action group also suggests that up to eight public buildings could be affected. “We have had contact from people all over the county about suspected pyrite,” she said. “It is very important to say that this is suspected pyrite, as testing might not yet have been done in some cases. Our group has had contact and photos and videos sent in from people in every corner of Clare, and more people are coming forward all the time.” Clare County Council is still in a process of negotiation with the Department of Housing over a report submitted last July to make the case for inclusion in the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme. Meanwhile, the scheme itself is being revised after a government decision last November. While homeowners had hoped …