Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour) | Oireachtas source

In March 2013 I announced a capital provision of €275 million for allocation to 34 city and county councils in respect of a number of measures under my Department's social housing investment programme, SHIP, for 2013.

The allocations included some €65 million for the local authority housing construction and acquisitions programme, some €40 million for the voluntary and co-operative housing construction and acquisitions programme, some €80 million for the construction of new homes and the refurbishment of existing properties under the national regeneration programme, some €15 million for the capital advance leasing facility and some €4 million in respect of Traveller-specific housing. Given the level of capital resources available, there is a shift away from the traditional local authority housing construction and acquisition programmes towards more flexible funding models.

In 2013, new social housing supply will be largely delivered through the social housing leasing initiative, the capital advance leasing facility and the rental accommodation scheme. The limited capital funding available is being targeted at the acquisition of built properties, including NAMA properties, the construction of new homes for people with specific categories of housing need and meeting general housing need in areas where the supply of properties for leasing is low. With a view to making optimum use of the capital funding available under the housing programme over the 2012-14 period, I announced funding of €100 million in July 2012 for a three-year housing construction and acquisition programme to deliver some 800 new units of social housing by the end of 2014. This includes a construction programme for 185 local authority houses and 111 houses for special needs accommodation for the voluntary sector. I propose to circulate in the Official Report tables identifying the projects included in the three-year programme and the regeneration and Traveller accommodation programmes.

The local authorities and approved housing bodies also augment their housing stock through targeted acquisitions programmes. Earlier this month, each city and county council was invited to submit proposals for the purchase of new permanent social housing units to meet specific identified housing needs, to be funded out of the capital provision for 2013. Local authorities were also invited to submit a programme of acquisitions by approved housing bodies, to be funded under the capital assistance scheme, which will facilitate people with a disability to live independently within communities. I will announce details of these acquisition programmes over the summer period. My Department supports a robust programme of social, economic and physical regeneration at six locations across the country, including Dublin city. Approximately 412 new units of accommodation will be delivered under construction contracts recently completed or under construction in 2013. The 2013 capital allocations to local authorities also include funding in respect of Traveller-specific accommodation as well as outstanding commitments on items such as final accounts, contingencies and retention sums on housing schemes completed prior to 2013.

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