Niall Collins (Limerick, Fianna Fail)
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Question 4: To ask the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government if funding will be provided to the RAPID scheme in Rathkeale, County Limerick before the year end; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24273/11]

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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In December 2009, the previous Government approved disbursements from the Dormant Accounts Fund for a once-off measure to the value of €1.25 million for the five new provincial towns incorporated under RAPID. These are Ballina, Dungarvan, Enniscorthy, Mullingar and Rathkeale. InDecember 2010, Pobal, which advertises, appraises and recommends beneficiaries under various dormant accounts measures, submitted recommendations to the value of €1.25 million for this RAPID additionality measure. All the recommendations are for capital expenditure.

However, under Government accounting procedures, disbursements on dormant accounts measures are paid in the first instance up front from the Department's Vote in the same way as with any other spending programme. We have to source funding for dormant accounts programmes from our Exchequer allocation in the annual Revised Estimates Volume. The dormant accounts capital budget for my Department for 2011 is fully committed to existing projects and our priority in the light of the available allocation must be to ensure that there is sufficient funding to meet existing legal contractual commitments.

The position with dormant accounts expenditure compared with other funding programmes is that once spending takes place, it is reimbursed to the Exchequer from the dormant accounts fund in accordance with the Dormant Accounts Acts, in the form of appropriations-in-aid payable through the Department's Vote. In this way, the costs associated with dormant accounts measures are Exchequer neutral. Departments cannot spend appropriations-in-aid directly themselves once they are reimbursed from the fund. They are instead refunded to the central Exchequer. Moneys disbursed from the dormant accounts fund increase Government debt levels as the money belongs to the account holder, who can reclaim it at any time, and not to the State. Consequently, every euro spent from the fund is regarded in accounting terms as a potential Government liability.

I can confirm that eight capital projects have been prioritised by Pobal under the RAPID additionality measure for Rathkeale. The matter of progressing the measure to contract stage is being kept under active review in the light of availability of funds between now and the end of this year.

Niall Collins (Limerick, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister for his reply which brings a little more clarity. I take this opportunity to press him on it because it is of vital importance to the town of Rathkeale. Arguably, Rathkeale is the second largest town in County Limerick and it has severe social and physical problems, of which I am sure he is aware.

The town is bypassed but it has a massive indigenous Traveller population. Over the summer, we have seen connections with the halting site at Dale Farm in England where the local authority there has ring-fenced £20 million to deal with the issue. There are also connections with Green Acres and the allegations of slavery. There are systemic problems in Rathkeale. Some members of the Traveller community use the Traveller movement as front when, in fact, they are engaged in criminality. Every piece of property which goes on sale in Rathkeale is bought by members of the Traveller community. There are major problems there. I could go on at length but I know there is a restriction on time.

Will the Minister prioritise this? I have met the community council in Rathkeale a number of times, as have the other public representatives. It wrote to the Minister recently and I know this has been passed to the Minister of State, Deputy Penrose, who cannot be here due to ill health. I wish him well and hope he has a speedy recovery. Will the Minister and the Minister of State take the opportunity to meet the local community council and walk through the town street by street? When the Minister of State, Deputy Penrose, was last in the area, he visited Limerick city regeneration. Rathkeale is similar in that there are deep-rooted social problems and derelict properties with all the social fall out which goes with that. Rathkeale needs something similar to the regeneration projects going on in Limerick city.

I would like a commitment that the Minister and the Minister of State will meet the local community council and walk through the town street by street in the near future and take this matter seriously. The situation is so bad that when maps are produced in County Limerick, Rathkeale is omitted. It is the second largest county town, although it might have been overtaken by Kilmallock. Tourism organisations, hoteliers and the agencies promoting the area have dropped the name and symbol of Rathkeale from maps, which is quite serious. Will the Minister prioritise RAPID funding and give us a commitment that in time, he will meet the local community council, although I know he is busy?

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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I acknowledge everything that Deputy Niall Collins has said about Rathkeale. The case he has put forward is a strong one. I have been to Rathkeale but I did not meet anybody there. I walked the main street there in recent times and I am familiar with the projects that have been submitted. The problem is that five areas were identified under the Dormant Accounts Fund, but no money was provided in 2011. In the context of that fund, I am doing my best to see if I can get some resources for some of the projects in order to give the identified areas a lift. I acknowledge that everything the Deputy said is right and I will do everything I possibly can to facilitate the projects that have been submitted. Hopefully, we can come to some resolution of the matter in the interests of the people of that area between now and the end of the year.