I move amendment No. 1: To delete all words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following: "notes that: — the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme (DCB Scheme), which provides grants to help those affected by defective concrete blocks to remediate their homes, is underpinned by the Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Act 2022 (2022 Act); — over 3,500 homeowners are now at various stages of the DCB Scheme, and will be supported with grants for 100 per cent of eligible expenditure up to a maximum cap of €462,000 per household, and this represents a 10 per cent increase in the maximum cap since the DCB Scheme launched in 2023; — more than €336 million has been spent on the DCB Scheme to date, with a commitment to more than doubling the level of funding for 2026 to €175 million, and to continue higher investment levels over the entire period of the National Development Plan 2026-2030; — the DCB Scheme is actively helping homeowners to rebuild their homes, allowing them to move on with their lives; — over 500 homes have been fully remediated to date, with approximately 750 more currently at various stages of construction; — additional counties continue to be added to the DCB Scheme, clearly showing the Government's commitment to help all those affected by the legacy defects caused by defective blocks; — the legislation refers to I.S. (Irish Standard) 465:2018, the Standard which provides for the assessment, testing and categorisation of damaged buildings incorporating concrete blocks containing certain deleterious material, which was published in November 2018, and the 2018 version of the Standard did not require any testing of foundations as there has never been any evidence of damage to foundations, and the DCB Scheme and the underpinning legislation make no provision for such testing; — in November 2021, as Ireland's official standards body, the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI) was tasked by the Government with a special review of the concrete Standard, this review started in March 2022, and has been conducted by the TC 63 Concrete Blocks Committee of the NSAI, membership of this Committee included representatives of the concrete industry, Engineers Ireland, the Geological Survey Ireland, homeowner action groups, the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and the Housing Agency; and — a new revised Standard, I.S. 465:2026, was recently published by the NSAI on 2nd June, 2026, and the revised Standard is based on new research in the area, it entails quite significant changes from the previous Standard in that, under the new Standard, almost all houses with defective concrete blocks would be demolished, and furthermore, the Standard provides for the testing of the foundations of each house in case they may be found to be affected at some point in the future, notwithstanding that there are no current cases of damage to foundations; and agrees that: — aspects of the changes entailed by the new Standard require detailed consideration in terms of the DCB Scheme, and could entail significant financial implications for the State if adopted under the DCB Scheme; — the 2022 Act requires that the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage shall, on the publication of the revised Standard, undertake a review of the legislation, the Act also requires that, not later than three months after the completion of the review, the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage shall make a report to each House of the Oireachtas of their findings and conclusions resulting from the review, and it is intended that this formal review of the DCB Scheme will be initiated by the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage shortly; — existing DCB Scheme participants who have already received their determination under I.S. 465:2018 will have the choice to continue with their works; — the review will focus, as per the provisions of Section 51 of the Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Act 2022, on the operation of the Act in the first instance, with all matters relating to the introduction of I.S. 465:2026 and its interaction with the DCB Scheme being considered as part of the review, and this will include the matter of foundations; and — the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage will consider all implications of the new I.S. 465:2026, and make recommendations to the Government on any proposed changes to the DCB Scheme as soon as possible.". I would like to thank the group involved in bringing this motion to the House today. The case is well made by Deputy Charles Ward, in particular. No one has lived this experience the way he has. No Member of this House can say they have lived and breathed this issue the way he has, having personally experienced it, so I completely appreciate the points and sentiments made. That is no disrespect to Deputy Murphy, in that his point is made as well but I wanted to say at the outset that Deputy Ward has lived this and can speak about it with authority. The standards were just revised on 2 June. We have to rely on the science that we have. There are mixed messages. On the one hand Deputy Murphy is saying the science is faulty. Deputy Ward is saying he has full faith in the science and the scientists. We have to decide whether we trust the science and the evidence we have as per the revised standards or not. If I can give a shred of comfort, despite the fact we are proposing an amendment, the Minister has committed to reviewing the Act as quickly as possible. I do not have an exact timeline for that but it will be reviewed as quickly as possible because, as the Deputy said, new evidence is always emerging. Today's motion sets out a number of matters relating to the recently released national standard. I will do my best in the time I have to address as many as I can. As the debate progresses, I am sure there will be time at the end to address further issues during the time allocated for concluding remarks. First, I would like to emphasise the Government recognises the distress experienced by thousands of homeowners caused by the use of defective concrete blocks in their homes. My Government colleagues and I are absolutely committed to ensuring that all such homeowners are provided with the right assistance to remediate their homes to allow them to move on with their lives. The publication of the new standard is welcome. The Deputies will be aware that in November 2021 as Ireland's official standards body, the National Standards Authority of Ireland was tasked by the Government with a special review of the previous standard. This review started in March 2022 and has been conducted by the TC63 concrete blocks committee of the National Standards Authority of Ireland. Membership of this committee included representatives of the concrete industry, Engineers Ireland, the Geological Survey Ireland, homeowner action groups and the Housing Agency. The Department also participated in this group during the full period of its deliberations on the revision of IS 465: 2018. The State also funded the required independent research that contributed significantly to the review of the standard. My Department remains in regular contact with those affected and we continue to work to listen to homeowners as we keep the scheme under review to identify where we can improve how it operates. The level of commitment shown by this Government to affected homeowners is clearly shown by our actions over the past few years. Principally these relate to the funding we have provided and the way we have extended the scope of the scheme as and when needed. Finally, there is the very real and practical way in which we monitor how the scheme is working within the framework of the legislation set down by the Oireachtas and how we adapt to changing circumstances to improve the scheme for homeowner participants on a continuous basis, including making amending legislation in the Houses last year. Over 3,500 homeowners are now at various stages of the DCB grant scheme and will be supported with grants for eligible expenditure up to a maximum cap of €462,000 per household - this represents a 10% increase in the maximum cap since the scheme launched in 2023. More than €336 million has been spent on the scheme to date and Government funding for this work continues to be provided as and when required on an annual basis, with a record €175 million allocated to fund the scheme in 2026 - that is more than double the amount allocated to the scheme last year and reflects in the increase up take in the grant scheme. Over 500 homes have been fully remediated to date, with approximately 750 more currently at various stages of construction. When the current grant scheme launched in 2023 it contained four designated local authority areas. In 2024 Sligo County Council was added to the scheme and this year parts of Fingal County Council and Wexford County Council were added to the scheme. Parts of Meath County Council and Carlow County Council will also shortly be added to the scheme. Following the commencement of various parts of the defective concrete block (amendment) Act 2025 , the Minister, Deputy Browne, adopted regulations in February and June that provided welcome improvements to the grant scheme. The February regulations allowed homeowners who had suffered construction inflation to apply to the scheme for an increased grant, which resulted in them receiving additional funding to remediate their homes. The June regulations operationalised further improvements, including a key change to allow certain homeowners apply to the scheme to enable them to build a new property adjacent to their defective home and remain in it until the new home is completed. This has provided welcome relief for families who have homes adapted for the needs of members of the household. These regulations also recognised that there are many affected homes that are attached to other affected homes, such as semi-detached properties. Prior to this change, if one of the two attached dwellings did not meet the scheme damage threshold, it could not proceed to obtain a determination from the Housing Agency. The regulations provide a route for this cohort of applicants and provide a pathway for them to receive a determination under the grant scheme. The point is there have been adaptations and amendments since the grant scheme was first introduced. The current grant scheme was designed in accordance with the prevailing scientific evidence available at the time. With the publication of IS 465:2026 we have the most up-to-date science available that will help shape changes to the grant scheme following a review of the operation of the 2022 Act. This requirement is contained in section 51 of the Act. It requires the Minister for Housing must initiate a review within three months of the completion of the review of the national standard, I.S. 465:2018, and that within months of the completion of the review he shall make a report to each House of the Oireachtas with his findings and conclusions of the review. I understand the urgency of this review for homeowners. Officials in my Department have already begun preparation work that will assist the review. A request for legal advice was submitted to the Attorney General's office and it has provided initial advice on the implications of I.S. 465:2026 for the grant scheme, with further advice expected in the coming weeks. The initial advice has indicated current scheme participants can continue to proceed with their works under the determination given to them. I emphasise that the review will focus, as per the provisions of the 2022 Act, on the operation of the Act in the first instance. All matters relating to the introduction of IS 465:2026 and its interaction with the grant scheme will be considered as part of the review of the 2022 Act. This will include the matter of foundations. I appreciate that naturally there has been significant focus on the foundations issue arising out of the publication of the revised standard. My understanding is that there were a range of views submitted to the NSAI regarding the impact or otherwise on foundations in the medium to longer term. Until this important review is complete it would be premature for me to speculate on exactly what changes may be required to the grant scheme with regard to foundations or indeed any other aspect of the scheme. I want to ensure that, as we now have the most up-to-date science, proper time and consideration is given to understanding how this new knowledge impacts the scheme and how we can best use it to assist applicants to the scheme. I am very much aware also of the very real concern out there among homeowners who wish to have clarity and certainty about how their sometimes unique sets of circumstances will be catered for going forward. A balance will have to be struck between a robust and comprehensive review and the need to have this done in a timely manner that pays due respect to the real concerns of homeowners. My Department has been working closely over the past few weeks since the publication of IS 465:2026 with the designated local authorities, the Housing Agency and the homeowner liaison officer. A number of meetings have taken place to assess the potential immediate impact of the revised standard on scheme participants. Communications will issue shortly from my Department to update homeowners in detail, where appropriate, on where they stand following the IS 465 revision. This Government has always committed to following the science when it comes to the defective concrete blocks scheme. The approach I have outlined in my speech is once again clear evidence of this. I conclude by thanking the National Standards Authority of Ireland for the time and effort that went into the new standard. I specifically acknowledge the efforts of the committee members and acknowledge that this voluntary work was time-consuming and difficult. That outlines the current situation. The new standards have just been published. The potential impact is still being realised but, as has been the case since the grant scheme was introduced, we have always amended and adapted it and introduced new measures and provisions. If it is necessary to do so again, we will do that, but the Minister has committed to reviewing the Act as quickly as possible and bringing that report to the Houses.

Sentiment score: 0.17