Deputy Charlie McConalogue has criticised Minister for Housing Eoghan Murphy for failing to publish a long-awaited report on the Tenant Purchase Scheme.
The scheme allows for social housing tenants to buy their home from the council however, following the scheme’s reintroduction in 2016, it was quickly established that the criteria was much too rigid.
Deputy McConalogue commented, “When the then Housing Minister Simon Coveney re-introduced the Tenant Purchase Scheme in 2016, he agreed that a full review would be carried out one year later – in 2017.
“Minister Eoghan Murphy has confirmed to me that the review was carried out and the report is ready. However, it has still not been published.
“The fact that this report has been sitting on the Minister’s desk for the best part of a year raises serious questions. Why has it not accessible to the public? The longer he blocks its publication, the longer people who have the means to buy their home, but who do not currently meet the criteria for the Tenant Purchase Scheme, have to wait to do so. This makes no sense.”
The Inishowen TD said any of these people are pensioners, who have acquired life-long savings, but are still excluded from the scheme because now their sole income is their pension.
He added “The scheme is beneficial for both the tenants and the local authority. It provides the council with a source of revenue which could in turn be put towards purchasing other homes for people on the housing waiting list, which is increasing daily in our County.
“This report needs to be published as soon as possible and the Minister must ensure that those who demonstrate they are able to buy out their home are allowed to enter into the Tenant Purchase Scheme.”
