Tag Archives: Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme

RELIEF has been expressed as Clare was officially recognised this week in the grant for homeowners with defective blocks. It is expected that Clare County Council will be in a position to accept applications online from Thursday (July 6). After an intensive campaign of almost three years, Clare is now one of four counties where homeowners with pyrite in their blocks can apply for the government grant. The Housing Minister signed off on the regulations for the updated scheme on Monday last (July 3). The Council has said that homeowners will be able to apply online later this week, and that it has the necessary “staff and systems in place”. The woman who spearheaded the campaign in Clare, Dr Martina Cleary, said there is relief that this county has finally been included, while certain concerns remain. “I found it very moving that Clare is now recognised and that we finally have equal rights,” she said. “This is an incredible achievement. …

A FACILITATOR to help Clare homeowners applying for grant support to treat the damage caused by pyrite, is being sought.  Councillor Ian Lynch confirmed that Clare County Council has written to the Department of Housing in relation to the recruitment of a local facilitator. Two staff were hired in Donegal – one of the four counties covered by the new grant – in March. Their role is to support those applying for the new scheme, which is expected to open imminently, though one-to-one clinics and public information sessions. “The Council has officially applied to the Department to appoint a facilitator,” the Independent councillor said. “The ball has started to roll on that matter. Any time there is a resource being provided and paid for by the Department, we need to grab it with both hands. It’s good to be able to reassure homeowners and CPAG after the questions that were raised at the meeting in Ennis. Homeowners will need someone …

THE competence of the Minister for Housing has been called into question as uncertainty continues over exactly when the grant scheme for Clare homeowners with defective blocks will open.  Following a meeting in Ennis two weeks ago, Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne tabled two Parliamentary Questions (PQs) asking Minister Darragh O’Brien for an update. The Kilrush-based TD also asked what additional resources would be provided to Clare County Council to assist in the processing of applications from homeowners here. The Independent TD was waiting several days for a reply from the minister, who said he hoped the scheme’s regulations would be signed “in the coming weeks”. She told The Champion that, a year after the minister agreed to include Clare and Limerick in the new grant scheme, the vague reply and ongoing lack of clarity were unacceptable. “I’ve heard about the stress, strain and health implications of having pyrite, of living in damaged and cracked homes and the longer homeowners are left …

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 …

SIX months after the government agreed to open a grant scheme to Clare homeowners affected by pyrite, more than one thousand people in this county continue to live in defective homes. As the first cold snap of the winter bites, many face the prospect of sky-rocketing costs for heating, much of which will escape through the severe cracks in their homes.  Despite what was described as a “positive” meeting, this week, between Council officials and members of Clare Pyrite Action Group (CPAG), there is no clarity on when exactly homeowners in this county will be able to apply for the grant. The current estimate is that the scheme will open in Q1 of next year, but no exact date has been set. Dr Martina Cleary, Linda O’Callaghan and Geraldine Kennedy attended the meeting on Wednesday (December 7). “It was a very positive meeting,” Dr Cleary said, “but the Council doesn’t seem to know much more than the homeowners. The Department …

CLARE County Council has said that it is continuing to engage with national government and the Housing Agency on the new scheme for homeowners with defective blocks.  Despite the fact that the Defective Concrete Blocks Scheme was extended to Clare and Limerick last June, the grant has still not opened to homeowners in the Mid-West. The scheme itself was revised through legislation signed by the President in July, but is still not operational in the four counties it covers. Last week, angry homeowners, facing another winter of uncertainty, told Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien of their frustration at being “trapped” in their unsafe homes. They also appealed to him to give a date for the opening of the new scheme.  In response to a query from The Champion, the Council said it is still awaiting clarity on the role of each local authority. “Since the approved inclusion of County Clare properties onto the Defective Concrete Block Redress Scheme, we are continuing to engage with …

THE government’s decision to reduce the proposed levy on concrete products has been described as “literally a half measure” by the founder of the Clare Pyrite Action Group (CPAG).  Dr Martina Cleary said the reduction to five percent of the levy announced in the Budget would still just bounce back on those who have been forced to remediate their homes because of defective concrete blocks.  While the levy was unveiled as a means of funding the revised grant scheme for pyrite and mica-affected homeowners in Clare, Limerick, Donegal and Mayo, it generated widespread controversy over the likely impact on building costs. The CPAG founder described the measure as a “facade” which fails to challenge those who supplied defective materials affecting thousands of homes. “Rather than this half measure, there should be a full-scale public inquiry into those quarries and suppliers responsible and a massive fine imposed on them,” she said. “It is despicable that this revised grant is allowing those …

A NEW levy on concrete products, designed to fund grants for homeowners with defective blocks, has been criticised by a leading Clare campaigner.  As part of Budget 2023, a levy of 10% on concrete blocks and other products is to come into effect from next April. Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien said the charge will help to support the new defective blocks grants scheme, which was extended earlier this year to include Clare and Limerick.  Dr Martina Cleary, Founder of the Clare Pyrite Action Group (CPAG), said the move ultimately ends up hitting consumers, including those who will need to buy materials to remediate their homes. “Of course, there has to be a penalty on those responsible for defective blocks, but this levy is not targeting the real culprits,” she said. “The culprits are highly profitable companies who should be facing significant fines. The levy is just putting the cost back on individuals and families, as well as those who need …