Housing minister Darragh O’Brien has appointed a former Fianna Fáil election candidate – once predicted to be its choice for attorney general – as chair of the defective concrete blocks appeal board.
Government earlier this month announced the panel, which is tasked with reviewing decisions made under the state’s controversial Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme (DCBGS) established in response to the pyrrhotite and mica crisis in Donegal and other counties.
Meanwhile the housing minister also appointed a Donegal ex-property developer and former Labour party official – with eight debt judgments registered against his property – to the same appeals panel.
Affected homeowners are holding a protest today at the Department of Housing’s Custom House headquarters in Dublin.
“We have been informed that the appeals process is purely procedural, with no scientific or engineering review of decisions," said Marti McElhinney, Downgraded Homeowners Group spokesperson. "The appeal is limited to identifying administrative errors, failing to address the core issue. The Housing Agency has a legal responsibility to consider pyrrhotite – the proven cause of our homes' catastrophic deterioration.”
Fianna Fáil legal adviser
The newly appointed Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme appeals panel chair, Darren Lehane SC, unsuccessfully ran in the 2014 local elections for Fianna Fáil.
In January 2020 he advised then Fianna Fáil housing spokesperson Darragh O’Brien that a rent freeze was unconstitutional.
Lehane – described in 2020 as Fianna Fáil’s ‘legal adviser’ – was considered the party’s choice for attorney general during 2020 government formation talks.
Lehane has acted for several Fianna Fáil politicians including ex-TD Declan Breathnach whom Mary Lou McDonald sued for defamation.
'Five banks have pursued Cutliffe'
Also appointed to the appeals is Donegal ex-property developer and former Labour Party official Peter Cutliffe.
Since 2008 five banks have pursued Cutliffe, from Letterkenny in county Donegal, in the District Court, Circuit Court and High Court for his defaulting on loan repayments.
Friends First Finance was awarded a District Court decree against Cutliffe for €5,423.65 in April 2008.
ACC Bank secured a High Court judgment against Cutliffe for €43,478.45 in April 2008 and later registered it as a mortgage against his home in Donegal.
Meanwhile Friends First Finance was awarded a District Court decree against Cutliffe for €5,423.65 just two weeks later.
In July 2008 the Circuit Court granted Bank of Ireland three separate judgments against Cutliffe for a total of €46,244.41. Bank of Ireland obtained another judgment later that year in the District Court for an unpaid debt of €3,713.23.
Irish Life and Permanent were also granted a District Court decree against Cutliffe in July 2009 but the debt amount is not noted on the Land Registry folio for Cutliffe’s Donegal home.
In September 2014 AIB secured a Circuit Court judgment against Cutliffe. Again the amount owed is not noted on the property’s folio however it is understood to be more than €6,348.
Cutliffe took out a €288,000 mortgage on his property with First Active (now Ulster Bank) in 2005. The mortgage was transferred to Pepper Finance in 2020 as part of its purchase of non-performing mortgages from Ulster Bank.
Cutliffe, a qualified financial adviser and one-time property developer, was chair of the Labour party in Donegal until he resigned in 2013.
Homeowners affected by the crisis are holding a protest in Dublin today calling on housing minister O’Brien to overhaul the appeals process.
“We are here today because homeowner grievances demand substantive responses, not generic, boilerplate replies that fail to address our critical concerns. This disregard for scientific evidence and legal mandates not only places lives on hold but also erodes public trust in our institutions,” said Angela Ward, Mica Action Group.
O’Brien has been contacted for comment while Cutliffe declined to do so.
