In the Seanad this week Senator Rose Conway-Walsh showed pictures of a Mayo home which had been destroyed by pyrite. She used the photos she received from one home owner to demonstrate the urgent need for the expert committee to finalise its report and for the Government to put a redress scheme in place.
Speaking in the Seanad Senator Conway-Walsh said: "We just cannot wait for any longer for the redress scheme to be put in place. The fact is that the standards as laid down by the State were too low and the failure to regulate the standard of materials being supplied to home builders resulted in materials that were clearly not fit for purpose.
"It has now been a whole year since Minister of State, Paudie Coffey, announced that he had appointed Dennis McCarthy to chair the expert panel to investigate the problems with concrete blockwork in Mayo and Donegal. Mica and pyrite had been found in the blocks several years earlier. The terms of reference of the report included the commitment to submit a report by May 31 2016.
"These homeowners, who continue to pay mortgages and property tax in many cases should not have to wait any longer. The report must be finalised and published to allow for the redress scheme to be immediately put in place."
