Tag Archives: Minister Darragh O’Brien

DESPITE new proposals on redress for homeowners with defective concrete blocks, there is still no clarity on when Clare will gain access to the scheme, or on what terms. At the request of the Clare Pyrite Action Group (CPAG) answers have been sought by three Clare TDs. The responses they have received have been described by the group’s founder, Dr Martina Cleary as “completing ignoring the questions and the pyrite issue in Clare”. Earlier this month The Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland (SCSI) published proposals for the remediation of eight different dwelling types, including those in estates one one-off houses. Options range from full demolition and rebuilding to partial repair options. Significantly, the SCSI proposed grant support based on building costs for 2022. Previously, homeowners raised concerns about the difficulty in meeting eligibility for the revised Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme. They also voiced concerns that homeowners who did quality would be left with large shortfalls on their costs. Following …

The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh O’Brien TD, has issued a final call to people in Clare to share experiences of housing defects for a nationwide survey. The call has been issued to homeowners, landlords, directors of Owners’ Management Companies and Property Management Agents throughout the county. The experiences must pertain to housing defects relating to fire safety, structural safety and water ingress in purpose-built apartment and duplex buildings constructed in Clare between 1991 and 2013. The deadline for completing the surveys is Monday, March 14 2022. These experiences are sought by the ‘Independent Working Group to Examine Defects in Housing’ which was established by Minister O’Brien in February 2021. Views are sought from people across Clare regardless of whether such defects in those properties in Clare are currently known, unknown or where no such defects have arisen. Encouraging as many people as possible to participate in the survey before the March 14 deadline, Minister O’Brien emphasised: …

It has been a long time since there was a parade in Ennis. The pandemic put paid to so many public celebrations. That’s why, on Saturday last when over 200 people took to the streets, there was a very brief sense that normal life was returning. There were people of all generations with banners and flags flying, grandparents gently steering small children along in the colourful crowd of marchers that set off, behind a Garda escort, from Áras Chontae an Chláir. But this parade was far from normal. There were no smiles as the gathering assembled at its focal point at The Height, in the shadow of The O’Connell Monument. Instead, stress and worry were clearly visible on the faces of children, parents and grandparents as they heard calls for action on their pyrite-damaged homes. They listened to stories of others whose homes, like theirs, have started to crack and crumble. They heard of the fear and insecurity for those …

THE Minister for Housing has insisted that the bar has not been raised for Clare in terms of access to the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme, writes Fiona McGarry. However, Darragh O’Brien is likely to face intense questioning when he meets the county’s Oireachtas members in Dublin this Thursday, January 27. Ahead of the meeting, Minister O’Brien issued a written assurance to Senator Martin Conway, who raised serious concerns over the level of detail being sought by the Department, as follow-up to a report submitted by the local authority last July. “It must be noted that the bar for entry for eligibility for inclusion into the scheme has not been raised by officials from my Department,” the letter stated. Speaking to The Champion, Senator Conway said he did not doubt the Minister’s sincerity in wanting to support Clare homeowners. He noted, however, that it is now six months since Darragh O’Brien visited homeowners in this county. “It is very regrettable …

THE Housing Minister has been told that ongoing delays in supporting Clare homeowners affected by pyrite represents “an undeniable form of discrimination”. In an open letter to Minister Darragh O’Brien, the founder of Clare Pyrite Action Group (CPAG) said the group is “at a loss” to understand why technical evidence provided on the impact of defective materials is not being accepted by his department. The letter also refers to Minister O’Brien’s visit to Clare last August, during which he pledged that a decision would be made in a matter of weeks on the Council’s request for access to the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme.  The letter states that homeowner in this county are being subjected to “a prolonged and even calculated form of exclusion, compromising both our human and constitutional rights as Irish and European citizens”.  Concerns are also raised over the revised grant scheme, as outlined last November. The letter calls for the abolition of the proposed sliding scale …

SERIOUS questions have been raised over the council’s application to have the defective blocks grant extended to Clare, The Champion has learned. Despite an assurance from the Housing Minister in August that a decision would be made within “a matter of weeks”, his Department is challenging several aspects of the council’s submission. In November, Minister Darragh O’Brien told Clare Oireachtas members his Department’s concerns were not “insurmountable”. However, a letter issued on Monday poses far-reaching questions. The document queries whether pyrite is the only cause of damage to the five homes tested. “It is unclear whether the presence of pyrite has manifested itself in structural wall damage, or if the walls are damaged either wholly or partially by another cause,” the seven-page letter states. The document adds that while the technical report has confirmed excessive amounts of pyrite, “it has not been stated however that the damage which has been documented has manifested due to the presence of reactive pyrite, …

Minister awaiting clarification around Council application before confirming access to defective blocks scheme THE Housing Minister has said he expects the scheme for homes with defective blocks to be extended to Clare, once queries over a county council application are dealt with. Responding to a query from Deputy Joe Carey, Minister Darragh O’Brien outlined the communications between his department and the local authority on the matter. “We received a submission from the local authority in July requesting an extension of the defective block grant scheme to County Clare,” he outlined. “We issued a response on August 3 indicating we would review the submission and we did so. We saw details of a breakdown of costs associated with the report on September 28. “A number of issues arose, none of them insurmountable. It is standard that clarification is needed. “I have been directly involved with regard to the submission on Clare. In this regard, I asked my officials to deal with …

CLARE’S Sinn Féin TD has hit out at what she described as “the ongoing inaction by the government” in response to Clare homeowners affected by pyrite and mica. Deputy Violet Anne Wynne described the recent announcement that bringing Clare homeowners into the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme will require the advice of the Attorney General (AG) and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, as “a delaying tactic”. “The recent statement by Minister [Darragh] O’Brien is more of the same,” the Kilrush resident said. “[It’s] a delaying tactic in what is inevitable and has been rigorously proven as such. There are at least 90 homes and two estates affected by pyrite defective blocks, but the real number may indeed be much higher. The government’s stall tactics add insult to injury.” Deputy Wynne also repeated concerns over the burden of stress placed on those affected by defective materials including pyrite and mica. “Based on my engagement with the Clare Pyrite Action …