Mica scheme amendment bill to undergo pre-legislative scrutiny in autumn

The legislation required to amend the defective concrete blocks scheme will face pre-legislative scrutiny when the Dáil returns later this month after its nine-week summer recess.

The original Act, signed into law in July 2022 and commenced a year later, bypassed this stage after the Government deemed the issue urgent. Critics argued that scrutiny could have been completed quickly without delaying the scheme.

We are about to find out which side was correct with the Department of Housing confirming that the Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks (Amendment) Bill will undergo pre-legislative scrutiny (PLS) before the Oireachtas Housing Committee during the autumn term.

The Dáil adjourned on 17 July and will reconvene on 17 September.

In defending their long summer holidays, politicians regularly highlight that committee work continues during recess. However, the Joint Committee on Housing has not met since mid-July and has no meetings scheduled for the next two weeks.

Read more: Mica Action Group winds up after ten years of lobbying 

A Department of Housing spokesman said the heads of bill for the amending legislation are being prepared by parliamentary counsel, following Government approval in June for priority drafting.

While the legislation will be advanced “as expeditiously as possible,” the Department noted that final approval rests with the Oireachtas.

The contents of the new legislation have not yet been published. However, Housing Minister James Browne has indicated it will:

* raise the maximum grant available to €462,000;

* adjust square foot/metre grant rates to reflect current building costs;

* extend the timeframe for works from 65 weeks to 130 weeks; and

* in limited cases, allow a new home to be built alongside a condemned one.

The amendment bill is expected to be shorter than the 2022 Act, but this time its provisions will be examined in detail before reaching the floor of the Dáil.

How quickly this legislation will be enacted and come into effect remains to be seen.