Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)

I should like to thank the Deputy for raising the question. In fact I have visited Ballylynch twice and fully understand the desire of the Deputy that this issue of regeneration should be proceeded with. I hope I get to visit Ballylynch a third time, when perhaps I can get a second goal against him.

This Government's commitment to social housing takes a broad approach to supporting the development of sustainable communities. A crucial element of this approach is our commitment to supporting the development of sustainable communities in existing local authority estates through various improvement and regeneration initiatives. Regeneration, in particular, is focused on addressing the issues of social, educational and economic disadvantage experienced in some of the most challenging areas of the country.

The social housing improvement works programme spans a range of Exchequer funded and local authority funded programmes and initiatives designed to maintain and improve the local authority housing stock. Over the past number of years, the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government has significantly increased its investment in this area through support for estate-wide remedial works, programmes where specific deficits are to be addressed - for example, from a health and safety or energy efficiency perspective - and for an ambitious national programme of regeneration projects. For all projects, with the exception of large regeneration projects, the Department has required a contribution from the local authority's own resources.

The remedial works programme provides support for local authorities to significantly improve run-down estates by improving the layout, addressing issues of anti-social behaviour, improving the housing fabric, and where possible, addressing issues of social exclusion. This programme has been expanding since it commenced in the 1980s and is a critical element of the overall improvement works programme. It is well recognised that remedial works projects are significantly more labour intensive than new construction projects, and as such also offer opportunities to stimulate local employment in some of the most disadvantaged areas of the country.

In 2009, the Department has continued to support some 55 remedial work projects around the country from an allocation of €53 million. A further €35 million of funding will be required in future years to complete these projects and will obviously have first call on the available funding. In addition, a further 22 projects were identified for inclusion in the programme for the period 2010-12, with a total estimated cost over the three years of €50 million. A number of these projects are now at funding approval stage and, in light of the resources available to the Minister for 2010, he is now considering the extent to which these can be supported next year.

This brings me to the project raised by Deputy Mattie McGrath - the Ballylynch estate in Carrick on Suir, County Tipperary, which is one of the projects mentioned as being considered in the context of available funding for 2010. The Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government has already supported a pilot project of ten units in the Ballylynch estate. The next phase of the project involves both new build and remedial elements. In general, 75% of the funding for remedial schemes is available from the Department, with 25% being provided by the local authority from its own internal capital receipts.

Once again, I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. Ba mhaith liom buíochas a ghlacadh leis an Teachta as ucht an scéal seo a thógáil sa Dáil. Tá meas ar leith agam ar an bpobal áirithe i Ballylynch. Is ceantar RAPID é. Ba mhaith liom a dheimhniú uair amháin eile go bhfuil tacaíocht ginearálta ar fáil ón Rialtas le haghaidh aththógáil na n-eastát seo.

See this speech in context