Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It is a fair point. We launched the scheme in July to get it up and running and test the interest in it. Without pushing it and doing a public information campaign there has already been a very good response. There will be a public information campaign around it and we will expand it to the cities. I am sorry; I neglected to answer that question. It will be in the month of November but I cannot give a precise date. We have to make sure the guidance is out there already. I will have housing summits with the local authorities on 13 October and I will be going through this and the changes with each director of services for housing. To be fair to the local authorities, it is another role they are taking on and they have done it very well already. As I said, there have been 169 applications in less than four weeks. I do not have the up-to-date figures. It will be open in November nationwide, for cities, rural areas, towns and villages.

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