The Valletta government flats refurbishment project in 2011. The government is now working to ensure more apartments are ready for social housing. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli

Social Solidarity Minister Michael Farrugia yesterday told Parliament the government was working on a clear direction for Housing Authority projects that would be announced shortly.

He said another huge project was on the cards.

Winding up the debate on the Housing Authority’s financial estimates, Dr Farrugia described Skema Kiri as an emergency loss-making project to the tune of “€2 million for 10 useless years”, because rented accommodation would revert back to the owners and social residents would go back to the authority.

For the same amount “and a little more”, the government was now working to ensure more apartments were ready for social housing at social rents for vulnerable people. Eventually, the Housing Authority would become owner of those residences.

He pointed out that not all Skema Kiri apartments were fully furnished. In most cases, the incumbent had to pay for kitchens, bathrooms and other facilities that one would have to leave behind to be enjoyed by the owner.

Dr Farrugia recalled that former minister Chris Said had closed the applications for Skema Kiri in June 2012 and the only contracts concluded had been in Gozo. Most properties in the scheme had been distributed by the present administration.

Another scheme mentioned by the Opposition had been Sir Sid Darek but they seemed to have forgotten that it only involved apartments. This government had extended it to other, bigger, residences.

Under the previous administration, housing schemes had been set up, closed, reopened and renamed.

There had been seven years of no social housing for people with mental health problems. Now, the Housing Authority was earmarking properties for people with special needs.

Dr Farrugia said the government was really fighting poverty which under the previous administration had climbed from 20 to 24 per cent of the population. This especially applied to thousands of senior citizens.

The Housing Authority’s remit included social housing and the Government Property Division was responsible for social accommodation. In the future, this responsibility will be shouldered only by the Housing Authority.

A profiling exercise had been carried out to verify which cases were genuine. Steps had been taken against individuals who rented social housing to others at commercial rates. These individuals were also found to abuse social benefits.

Dr Farrugia complained that a paper-based filing system was still being used, when information could be better stored by using IT systems.

The issue of compensation for expropriated land on which residences under the Home Ownership Scheme had been built was laborious due to difficulties in reaching agreement with owners.

Michael Farrugia described Skema Kiri as an emergency loss-making project to the tune of ‘€2 million for 10 useless years’ because rented accommodation would revert back to the owners and socialresidents would go back to the authority

Housing Authority officials had visited the drug rehabilitation programme at San Blas and the Corradino Correctional Facility to assess the number of potential homeless when released. The government was seeking the assistance of NGOs to find shelter for such inmates.

He said professionals within the Housing Authority would be paid the same rate as other professionals in government departments so that these would not need to apply for jobs in the civil service.

The Housing Authority was responsible for major maintenance works in government housing; 36 contractors had been engaged to carry out repairs to 512 housing units in 2014 at a cost of €1.6 million. This was 121 cases more than the previous year.

Dr Farrugia said €1 million would be allocated this year for the scheme. This did not include structural works carried out by local councils. Another €800,000 would be spent on embellishment works in government apartment blocks in St Paul’s Bay, Senglea and Paola.

About 1,600 tenants were given rent subsidies with most applications coming from people who rented from the private sector. A total of 1,542 applications had been approved in 2014 to provide social assistance to tenants to convert substandard housing into acceptable habitation.

Another 449 applications had been approved for financial assistance to families which had to install equipment or make modifications to make their residences comfortable for disabled or elderly relatives with mobility problems.

He said 107 of these applications were filed by families having at least one member suffering from some form of disability.

These families would have to repay the subsidies received if they sold their residence in the next 10 years.

Dr Farrugia said the ministry was considering the maintenance of areas that had nothing to do with social housing but for which the Housing Authority was responsible.

The process for the signing of contracts for housing needed radical simplification since it was very complex. About 380 applications had yet to be finalised, at the rate of 170 applications a year.

Dr Farrugia said the government did not have it in mind to exchange land for built dwellings but was inclined to settle debts to the State through property.

Such property would be used to serve persons who were truly suffering homelessness.

Shadow minister Paula Mifsud Bonnici, Stephen Spiteri (PN) and Silvio Parnis (PL) also contributed to the debate.