Ms Caroline Timmons:

LIHAF is a programme that opened in 2016 and closed in 2017 with 30 projects approved under it. Those projects have been working their way through since then. Of the 30, six will not proceed for various reasons, including not getting the requisite permissions to move ahead. Twelve of the remainder have completed, while nine are at construction or tender approved and those are in areas like Dún Laoghaire, Cork, Limerick, Louth and Westmeath. Those are all proceeding. The reason the profile tended to be under last year is it is hard to predict when the tender stages might come to fruition and when the bills will come into the Department from the local authority. They have encountered issues through the years in this programme, such as judicial reviews, which affected a number of the projects, and difficult sites to progress, on top of capital issues. Moving the sites has proved difficult. That said, we are pleased with the progress made with the final projects. We can see clear pathways on the ones in construction. The final big one is Maynooth, which we need to see more progress on. We are working intensively with the local authorities to ensure those projects get over the line. We are happy there is a renewed focus on it. They have been seeking additional funding over the years. The cost of construction has also increased. We are pleased the Government approved additional funding this week to assist with some of the increases in construction costs.