Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)

The demand for housing grants under the Housing (Gaeltacht) Acts has not increased in the past few years. Indeed, following increases in the number of applications from 1,025 in 1998 to a high of 1,486 in 2000, the numbers have fallen back incrementally to 911 in 2004. It is expected that the number of applications this year will be comparable with last year. This is a reflection of the success of the scheme in improving the housing stock in the Gaeltacht over recent years to a point where the level of applications appears to have stabilised.

In terms of expenditure on the scheme, €4 million was allocated for Gaeltacht housing grants in 2004. However, expenditure did not reach the level anticipated, with €3.5 million of the allocation being spent. An allocation of €4 million has been made for 2005 and it is expected that this amount will be spent in full before the end of the year.

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