Legislation to establish mica defects scheme to be brought to Government shortly

Legislation that will establish a scheme to provide grants to homeowners affected by mica will be brought to Government “very shortly”, Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien has said.

Mr O’Brien said the Bill was in its final stage of preparation on Wednesday, and that he would be seeking the co-operation of all parties to ensure the legislation is passed before the summer recess in mid-July.

The legislation is expected to give homeowners in Donegal and Mayo access to enhanced grants to repair defects in their homes caused by the mineral, which has caused building blocks to crumble.

Mr O’Brien was responding to Sinn Féin deputy leader Pearse Doherty in the Dáil, who asked when would the legislation for the updated scheme be published, would there be pre-legislative scrutiny and “will it deliver genuine 100 per cent redress for these families?”

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“Our families are living in crumbling homes in Donegal, Mayo, Sligo, Clare and right across many other counties, and they’ve waited and waited for a just scheme, one that’s fit for purpose where they can start to rebuild their lives,” Mr Doherty said.

“So the defective concrete block grant scheme, which has been in operation since 2020, by your own admission has fallen far short of what is required. “It’s almost a year now since thousands of people came to the street and protested here in Dublin in an appeal for justice and fairness, and they shouldn’t have to do that again.”

Mr O’Brien said he had met homeowners from Donegal, Mayo and other affected counties and that his team continues to engage with them.

“The Bill is in its final stage of preparation. I intend to bring it to Government very shortly. I did ask all parties in the Dáil, and including your own to submit. I wrote a detailed letter to you, to Sinn Féin as well, asking for your input into the scheme, and even though your housing spokesperson actually said publicly that he would respond in detail, we never received a response.”

Mr O’Brien said he wanted to help people get their homes and lives “fixed”, and that the scheme would be “a substantial improvement” on what was in place in early 2020.

“I expect the legislation to come to Government very soon and what it would say is I will be seeking co-operation of all parties across the House to make sure that the legislation is passed before the summer recess so there is no delays.”