Tag Archives: pyrite

POLITICAL promises on the delivery of a grant scheme to Clare homeowners affected by pyrite were put to the test at a meeting in Ennis last Friday night (December 3). The politicians who attended – Deputies Joe Carey and Cathal Crowe; senators Timmy Dooley and Martin Conway and Mayor of Clare, PJ Ryan – were quizzed intensively over their efforts to support those whose homes are crumbling due to defective blocks. Concerns were also aired as to why technical aspects of the Council’s application to have Clare covered by the grant scheme are being queried by civil servants. “The government are not even kicking the can anymore, they’re kicking us down the street,” said Danny Moloney of Kilkishen. “We have to go back home and wonder if our house is going to fall down tonight. Where do we go from here? “Can the Oireachtas members from Clare give me, and the people here in this room, some hope that we …

A ‘safe homes for Christmas’ protest is to be held, later this month in South East Clare, by those affected by pyrite. An emotional meeting in Ennis last night (Friday, Dec 3) heard the frustration of members of the Clare Pyrite Action Group (CPAG), as delays continue in the assessment of their application for State redress. While the updated terms of the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme were unveiled on Tuesday, there was no indication of when the fund will be extended beyond Mayo and Donegal. The Department continues to query technical aspects of a report submitted by the council in July and a letter clarifying the full requirements is expected to issue on Monday. Against that backdrop, founder of the CPAG, Dr Martina Cleary told the meeting there is now no alternative but to take to the streets. “This will be an ‘all we want for Christmas is a safe home’ march,” she said. “We need you to come …

State accused of ‘stalling tactics’ by Clare advocate “A LITANY of broken promises” has been condemned by the founder of the Clare Pyrite Action Group, after confirmation of further delays in access to the defective blocks scheme. Dr Martina Cleary said that more than 100 homeowners in Clare will now have no option but to take legal action and engage in further protests. Despite assurances from the Housing Minister on August 27, that a decision on extending the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme would be made “within weeks”, the process has become protracted. After raising queries with the council about the cost of a technical report it submitted in July, the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (DHLGH) has now sought further technical data. This added hitch has sparked anger, with Dr Cleary accusing the Department of “stalling tactics”. “The Department is now looking for additional test data and it’s clearly a delaying strategy,” she told The Champion. “I …

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 …

DETAILS have been provided on the costs incurred by Clare County Council in preparing a report on the extent of pyrite in homes here. A Freedom of Information (FOI) request shows the council is seeking to recoup €80,000 after the Department of Housing asked it to make a case for extending the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme to Clare. The report is being considered by Minister Darragh O’Brien, alongside a major overhaul of the scheme itself, which currently only covers Mayo and Donegal. At a public meeting in October, attended by up to 80 homeowners, there were some fractious exchanges between Oireachtas members over the bill. A breakdown of the costs was sought by the Department of Housing and correspondence, secured under FOI, shows that the council clarified the bill. The authority said that external tests and reports were carried out on ten properties at a cost of €7,000 each. A further cost of €15,000 was incurred for “internal technical …

FURTHER delays in giving Clare homeowners access to the grant scheme for defective blocks have been strongly condemned by the founder of The Clare Pyrite Action Group. There were conflicting reports, at a recent public meeting, on whether and when the Department of Housing had raised queries with the council, over its application to access to the scheme. The Department has now clarified to Deputy Joe Carey and to The Champion that it is to contact the council “shortly” about the report it submitted in June. Given the Minister gave an assurance, on his Clare visit in August, that a decision would be made in a matter of weeks, the delay has provoked anger. “This is disgraceful carry on,” Dr Martina Cleary said. “Bureaucracy is being used to drag out people’s suffering. This obfuscation is unacceptable, and the council’s application is being pushed from pillar to post. It’s an utter joke and they think people are stupid enough to believe …

“LIGHT touch regulation” has been blamed for the crisis caused by defective concrete blocks in several counties including Clare.  At a meeting of the Clare Pyrite Action Group last Friday, Senator Martin Conway said “cost-cutting”, on the part of some in the construction sector, had also contributed to the worsening problem. “It’s nobody’s fault in this room,” he told the 80 people present. “It’s as a result of light touch regulation that governments over the years are responsible for, particularly in the late ‘90s and early 2000s, when there was no proper engineering regulation, examinations, no proper reporting. “This type of situation happened because developers, builders, and suppliers were in a situation where they were cost cutting to make as much money as possible. It’s even going back further than the early ‘90s. “The sad reality is that people in this room have been devastated. Their homes have been devastated. The duty on this generation of politicians, as far as …

THE first in-person meeting of the Clare Pyrite Action Group heard a heart-felt call for members to tell their stories publicly, and to prepare to support each other in the campaign for redress. Dr Martina Cleary, who founded the group over a year ago, addressed up to 80 people gathered at Treacy’s West County Hotel last Friday night (October 8) to ask questions of Clare’s Oireachtas members and other public representatives. She told the meeting that those whose homes have defective concrete blocks must be prepared “to take whatever measures are needed” to secure access to a grant scheme, and she urged those affected to join the campaign. The meeting was attended by Clare’s three senators and four of its five TDs, with apologies being sent by Deputy Michael McNamara. Councillors Joe Cooney, Ann Norton and Shane Talty were also present. At the outset, Dr Cleary told politicians that she was hoping for positive news on when Clare would secure …