Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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563. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the extent to which adequate funding and authority remains available to Kildare County Council to purchase and or build sufficient housing units to meet the demand in the area; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21062/20]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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There is a strong and clear commitment in the Programme for Government to increase our social housing stock by over 50,000 over the next five years with an increasing emphasis on homes being built by local authorities, approved housing bodies and State agencies. The Programme for Government also commits us to progressing a State-backed affordable home purchase scheme.   

Funding these ambitious programmes will also be a priority for the Government and funding is currently in place, across a range of programmes, to support the work of Kildare County Council and all other local authorities, to deliver social and affordable housing.  

A detailed Social Housing Construction Status Report is published by my Department which provides information on new build activity across all local authority areas. The most recent publication covers the period up to the end of Q4 2019 and was published on 14 May 2020. This report includes projects brought forward by Kildare County Council and is available on the Rebuilding Ireland website at the following link: https://rebuildingireland.ie/news/minister-murphy-publishes-social-housing-construction-status-report-for-q4-2019-2/. 

While Kildare County Council already has a social housing construction programme in train, I am keen that they are proactive in adding to this pipeline and that they advance their existing projects as speedily as possible.

 I will outline my detailed plans for affordable housing in the Autumn, taking account of existing measures and the input of delivery partners. 

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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564. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the funding that has been provided, approved or is available to Kildare County Council to facilitate inner and outer relief roads in Naas, County Kildare to alleviate severe traffic congestion and an alternative to the proposals already put forward by the local authority which did not receive support from the residents directly affected in a negative way; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21063/20]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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To support the costs associated with its intended construction of a Naas Inner Relief Road, in October 2017 Kildare County Council was approved for exchequer grant funding of up to €4,500,000 under the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund (LIHAF).  LIHAF funding supports the provision of infrastructure to facilitate residential land banks and allow for the delivery of housing thereafter.  

Kildare County Council has confirmed to the Department that a Part 8 planning application for this road was rejected by the Council in mid-2019 and has confirmed that this LIHAF project will now not proceed.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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565. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the funding that has been provided, approved or is available to Kildare County Council to facilitate inner and outer relief road and or second bridge crossing upstream bypass bridge in Celbridge, County Kildare to alleviate severe traffic congestion and an alternative to the proposals already put forward by the local authority which did not receive support from the residents directly affected in a negative way; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21064/20]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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My Department currently has no funding allocated or project agreement in place with Kildare County Council to facilitate an inner and outer relief road or a second bypass bridge in Celbridge.

Overall responsibility for roads policy and funding is a matter for my colleague the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport.