Pyrite redress scheme for Clare on the cards by Christmas

/in /by
  • Crowe meets with Housing Minister to seek assurances
  • Commitment is there to address Clare issues

 

Fianna Fáil TD for Clare Cathal Crowe has expressed confidence that a pyrite redress scheme will be operational for effected homeowners in Clare ahead of Christmas.

Deputy Crowe has met with Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien to seek assurances that any changes emerging from the ongoing review of the scheme currently operational for counties Donegal and Mayo would be applied to this county, once a scheme is launched here.

“I have met with Minister Darragh O’Brien, as a follow-up to his visit to Clare to meet with the Clare Pyrite Action Group,” said Deputy Crowe.

“Minister O’Brien assures me that the review of the redress scheme currently operational in Mayo and Donegal will very shortly conclude and any benefits that are accrued following the conclusion will also pass on to homeowners in Clare.

“I am confident that a redress scheme will be up and running in Clare before Christmas and I believe that they will benefit from the immense effort being made for improved redress, up to 100%, in Donegal and Mayo.

“It is vital that a redress scheme in Clare is approved in the quickest possible time – they took several years to devise and implement in other counties and we should learn from mistakes that have been made.

“In particular, I am concerned to see houses once considered to be Category 2 properties (i.e. could be repaired) have now deteriorated to the point where they are now Category 4 properties (i.e. requiring demolition).

“Any procrastination in having a scheme operational in Clare will cause prolonged anguish for the homeowners but will also prove more costly to the taxpayer.

“Separately, I am asking Minister O’Brien to initiate legal action against the quarries and block manufacturers who sold defective blocks in Co. Clare and beyond.

“I think this action needs to be treated as a separate issue from the redress scheme.

“If the two are intertwined, it will most likely lead to further delays in redress.

“A separate legal process needs to get underway. Some of these companies continue to trade very profitably and it’s only right that they too should have to pay some compensation.”

-ENDS-