Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for his question. The local improvement scheme, LIS, is a programme for improvement works on small private and non-public roads and it has been funded in the past by the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government and by the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport. Funding for the LIS was limited in recent years due to constraints on the public finances. However, I was very conscious of the underlying demand for the scheme in rural areas throughout the country. I therefore announced the provision of €10 million to local authorities for a local improvement scheme last September. Based on demand and the capacity of local authorities to complete works before the end of 2017, I allocated an additional €7.4 million to local authorities for LIS roads at the end of November. The LIS provided much-needed support in rural areas in 2017 and I have allocated a further €10 million for the scheme this year. I intend to announce details of the scheme, including the allocations for each county, later this month.

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