Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Thursday, 30 June 2016

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government

Estimates for Public Services 2016
Vote 34 - Environment, Community and Local Government (Revised)

9:00 am

Photo of Simon CoveneySimon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Some €42.5 million is being provided in 2016 for SICAP, which will be subject of a value for money review and a programme review this year. A review of the targets has already been completed. We can provide details of that review to the Deputy if he wants them. Preparations are already under way for the post-2017 SICAP. There is a focus on building vibrant communities through a range of measures, including SICAP, the urban regeneration schemes and the social inclusion programmes.

Some €500,000 has been provided for existing RAPID commitments. The programme for Government contains a commitment to roll out an enhanced RAPID programme. We will examine ways of financing that. I assure the Deputy that the programme is staying in our Department. He has probably seen some of the evidence of how we are prioritising certain urban regeneration projects to try to get them up and running. We signed off on a €29 million project for the north inner city yesterday. I hope we will be in a position to pursue a number of other urban regeneration projects, particularly in Dublin, before the end of the year.