Councillors seek mica clarity from Department

Donegal councillors Martin McDermott (Fianna Fáil) and Albert Doherty (Sinn Féin) are to meet Department of Housing officials to discuss the mica situation.

The councillors, chairperson and vice chairperson respectively of Donegal County Council's Mica Redress Committee, will be accompanied by members of the council's executive.

Also in attendance will be Paul Benson, a principal officer in the Housing Department who sat on government-established Working Group on the Defective Concrete Blocks Scheme.

The crunch meeting is scheduled for Thursday, January 20 at 10.30am

Speaking at this afternoon's ongoing Inishowen Municipal District councillors January meeting, Cllr McDermott described the meeting as “very important” and one the Mica Redress Committee had been pushing for for quite some time.

He added: “We will putting forward, not just the concerns of the private homeowners, but the concerns that the application process [for the council-led Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme] has stalled for some people, although not for all, and that people require their money back.

“People have been out several thousand euro now for months, some people for a year ans a half and they do need that money back. There is no reason that can't happen. There are a couple of things that need to be expedited very, very quickly by the Department and also the clarifications around the protocols of IS465 and deleterious materials that are showing in some of the reports that are coming in, a substantial amount of reports that are coming in now at the minute.

“And why the Council have stalled that process. I think that needs to be up and running very quickly and I think it is important we meet the Department officials who are dealing with this and also put our best foot forward to push the social housing aspect of it as well, the mica-affected social housing and to get that process pushed forward extremely quickly because, again, that has been with the Department now for months and it is still has not given any clarification as to when we can start doing work to our social houses.

“I know the chief executive has been working behind the scenes on this as well and trying to put as much pressure on as he can to get these things over the line and also for the Department to allow the Council funding to facilitate temporary homes, something we discussed earlier with Planning,” said Cllr McDermott.

Cllr McDermott added the Department would be pushed to get things moving by the end of January.

“People have waited long enough,” he said. “Hopefully by February, the new scheme will be in place and can go forward. But, I think, both social and private has to move forward.

“I think it is important too, going forward, that the Mica Redress Committee is at the forefront of pushing this and myself and Cllr Doherty are part of any engagements happening with the Department so that we can push the buttons on behalf of the Council, the members and the general public.”

Welcoming the meeting, Cllr Martin Farren (Labour) said it was time for the talking to stop and action to start.

He added: “All 37 councillors on Donegal County Council have spoken about this over the past few months. The decision lies in Dublin, lies with the Dáil, lies with our Oireachtas members.

“I think there is an onus now on the five Oireachtas members here in Donegal, when they come back on January 19, they work with yourselves, and get this project up and running as quickly as possible because people now are at the end of their tethers. The money has to be put in place immediately.”

Cllr Albert Doherty said the conveyor belt of processing mica applications seemed to have ceased or seized could be released very soon.

Cllr Doherty added: “Members recently are being told that families who have made applications are being told they are receiving 'technical consideration'. It is a way of saying there will be no progress while certain issues remain to be clarified for the busy team that we have there.

“I hope that we, on Thursday, can start getting some responses, so we can get this conveyor belt of process to begin to move at a much more satisfactory pace and at a much more satisfactory return for the many, many families.

“At Stage One, the last time, we had confirmation of eligibility of 622, approved 370 but, awaiting further information or being technically assessed up to 250. Those families have waited a long, long period to get over the fence into the Scheme proper and then for the hard-gathered money they had to put together to pass the process with the engineers. That is a matter with which we all want to assist and address,” said Cllr Doherty.

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