PENSIONERS are to meet in their biggest ever numbers as hundreds of defective block victims desperately seek help.
Pressure from the group since a high-profile meeting last month resulted in Housing Minister James Browne designating an experienced, senior official to meet with its representatives to discuss “critical issues affecting the elderly”.
A member of the Defective Concrete Blocks Silver Circle group revealed to the Donegal News that campaigning is tiring but they fear that they have no choice.
She said: “It is always hard to go down to Dublin and back the same day. It is a killer – but we have to keep fighting.”
Heartbreak for another affected family as builders demolish home. Photo: Cllr Ali Farren.
The group, which was set up for older and retired people, has been inundated since the Donegal News covered its inaugural meeting of October 13.
A membership surge since that first meeting means the group has arranged a meeting in Dungloe for this Saturday morning and another in Burt next Tuesday.
A spokesperson said: “Please come along, have your voice heard and meet people in similar situations as you.
“Silver Circle representatives wrote to Housing Minister James Browne to request a meeting with him directly to discuss critical issues affecting the elderly as part of the Defective Concrete Block Scheme.
“He has designated Derek Rafferty, head of the Department of Housing Remediation Unit, to take our meeting.”
Mr Rafferty has previously managed and overseen State-backed remediation schemes related to building defects, most notably Defective Concrete Blocks.
He frequently represents the Department such as on the Joint Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage to advise on the rollout and updates of the Enhanced Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme.
Donegal County Cllr Joy Beard of the 100% Redress Party was elected on a ticket to fight for defective block homeowners.
Pensioners with crumbling homes have outlined that they should be enjoying life after decades of paying taxes to the State, not begging for help under a collapsing roof.
They said they cannot get loans because paying them back is not an option because their working lives have expired.
Affected households complained that there is a deficit of information and set up a Facebook page so families can ask each other questions.
A woman asked about the cost of removing and replacing foundations.
A 72-year-old man responded: “It’s impossible to give a cost. If its average, then probably €10,000 to €15,000 – but mine went down 5.5 metres and cost me €76,500.
“I had to pay that before work could continue.”
He added: “To make things worse, I’ve had to listen to politicians telling us how wonderful the scheme is. The grant is woefully inadequate.”
Up-to-date details for the DCB Silver Circle group’s Dungloe meeting are available from its Facebook page, while the Burt meeting is at 11am in An Grianan Hotel.
This week, tireless campaigner, Cllr Joy Beard of the 100% Redress Party, hit out after Donegal County Council published its latest monthly rebuild figures this week as part of the Enhanced Defective Concrete Block Scheme.
They showed there have been 4,109 online registrations and 2,984 applications up to the end of last month.
Some 1,611 of those applications received an approved remediation option and had a grant amount issued, according to the council.
In 1,156 of the properties, works have commenced, while 521 have had works completed, and work is continuing at 635 properties.
In total, a sum of €314,273,949 has been paid out to affected owners under the grant scheme.
SHAME AND A DISGRACE
Cllr Beard branded the defective block scandal a “shame and a disgrace” accused the Government of letting down Donegal families through “failures and light-touch regulation”.
She said: “The report also fails to tell us how many of the 521 completed homes were full rebuilds and how many involved partial remediation.
“That breakdown must be published.”
She added: “Every statistic is a family. And behind far too many of these figures is untold suffering.
“We need to acknowledge why this money has to be spent.
“It is a shame and a disgrace that Government failures, light-touch regulation, and inadequate enforcement have left homeowners and taxpayers carrying the cost of this disaster.
“This should never had happened. Every completed home matters. It is important that families are once again safe.
“But the suffering continues for so many. Appeals still unheard, families awaiting testing results, homeowners awaiting determinations, people trying to find a way out of unsafe homes. Delay after delay after delay.”