5 days ago
Legal proceedings initiated over cancelled social housing
Minister for Housing James Browne has confirmed that legal proceedings in relation to a cancelled social housing programme have been initiated by way of judicial review against the Department of Housing.
Mr Browne said legal documents were received by the department on Friday in relation to legal proceedings over the Social Housing Public Private Partnership (PPP) Bundle 3 project.
The project involved the delivery of around 486 social homes across six sites in Dublin, Wicklow, Kildare and Sligo.
However, the Department of Housing decided not to proceed with the homes due to value for money concerns.
Social Democrats TD Rory Hearne raised the issue at the Oireachtas Committee on Housing this afternoon, asking the minister if he was aware that legal proceedings had been initiated by the preferred bidder for the project.
Mr Browne initially said he was not personally aware of any legal proceedings against his department.
However, he later said department officials had made inquiries and clarified that legal proceedings had indeed been initiated.
"My department was notified of it. I wasn't aware of that, but I can confirm that legal documents were received by my department in relation to the judicial review proceedings in relation to the PPP project.
"If I was aware of it, I wouldn't have made some of my comments earlier, because with legal proceedings hadn't commenced, it was not appropriate for me to make any comment in relation to matters under legal proceedings.
"But perhaps, just like my legal background and my commentary might indicate, I actually was not aware of it," Mr Browne told the committee.
Earlier, Mr Hearne told reporters that the legal threat could result in High Court action and had the potential to further delay related projects.
He said: "I was speaking to Dublin City Council officials yesterday, you will remember we've been raising concerns about the collapse of the PPP projects which are in a number of constituencies from Wicklow to Sligo to Dublin.
"We found out yesterday that it is our understanding that the preferred bidder in the PPP is taking the Department of Housing to the High Court to challenge these projects.
"Now, what that is likely to mean, we understand from the meeting, is that these projects are unlikely to proceed in other avenues being tendered even though they have planning permission.
"This is an absolute mess.
