Eight councillors tabled notices of question at the April meeting of Meath County Council.
Aontú Cllr Dave Boyne asked how many single-person HAP applications for room-only rental were refused in the last 12 months due to rents exceeding thresholds and how often the discretionary uplift was applied in such cases. Council officials said that the council does not retain data on affordability checks of this kind. Applicants were advised at an early stage if a property exceeds HAP market rent limits and in such cases the application does not proceed further and is not approved for HAP. As a result, no formal refusals are recorded at the application sage based on affordability checks. For all HAP tenancies commenced after 11 th July 2022 the council applies the maximum 36%
discretion, they said.
Sinn Fein Cllr Peter Caffrey asked for a report on the shop front enhancement scheme for businesses in the Meath area. The council replied that it was currently finalising the documentation for the expressions of interest for the scheme which was being advertised on 17 th April. The scheme will apply specifically to retail and commercial premises located on the main thoroughfares of the towns and villages across the county. All applicants must comply with the terms and conditions of the scheme and the grant itself will be for 50% of the eligible costs, to a maximum of €5,000.
Fine Gael Cllr John Duffy asked the council what progress had been made to identify civic buildings within its ownership where Changing Place Toilets could be installed. In reply officials quoted Part M (Access and Use) of the Building Regulations. They said the regulations meant that changing place toilets were to be provided in new facilities “and even then, there are criteria to be met, usually when a building exceeds a minimum floor area”. It also applied to existing buildings that were being extended, again with a caveat that the extension must exceed 25% of the existing floor area. This regulation was considered by all architects, consultants etc working on behalf of Meath County
Council at the various council buildings and these facilities are incorporated into the recently- completed Bettystown Library. Incorporation of this facility into most existing council buildings “would not be practicable”.
Fine Gael Cllr Alan Tobin asked when the council intended to carry out a review of the current standing orders for council meetings. Officials relied that these were reviewed and adopted by the elected members in June 2024 following the local elections. They said that the council would have regard to the outcome of the review of the Local Government Task Force and, having considered same, would determine whether a further review of the standing orders was required. In addition, the introduction of new technological arrangements in the council chamber might also necessitate a review of the standing orders.
Independent Cllr Alan Lawes asked how many adults currently living in emergency accommodation were working. The council replied that as of 30 th March 2025 there were 312 adults in emergency accommodation. Of these, 44 adults had confirmed to the council that they were in employment. The employment status of the lead member of each household is the only one recorded. Details of other adults or adult children in the household are not captured. “The actual number of adults in employment may, therefore, be higher than the figure reported”.
Sinn Fein Cllr Michael Gallagher asked for details of the amount of motor tax collected by the council in 2025. Officials replied that the total amount collected and remitted to the Department of Transport was €4.9m.
Sinn Fein Cllr Helen Meyer asked for a breakdown of the planning enforcement complaints in the last four quarters to include the description and category of the complaints.
