Brendan Griffin (Kerry, Fine Gael)
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I am grateful this Topical Issue matter was selected. I thank the Minister of State for being present to take it.

The matter relates to local improvement scheme, LIS, roads around the country. We know there are thousands of them all over Ireland that are awaiting funding. These are non-council roads and laneways that require improvement works. There are hundreds of them in my constituency in County Kerry. The Minister of State will be familiar with hundreds more in the Laois-Offaly constituency. They are all over the country. These are roads that communities cannot improve themselves because of the cost. The contribution from the State, through the LIS, via the local authorities, is very important in meeting the contribution of local residents to get the roads done. When the last 1 km or 2 km up to a house is almost impassable, it makes a significant difference to the quality of life of residents when it is surfaced to a proper standard. It is not just for people who drive but also for people who cycle, walk, use wheelchairs, push prams and buggies and in all sorts of different circumstances. Sometimes that is forgotten, as we often just think about roads in the context of motorised vehicles when they are about much more than that.

I welcome the progress in recent years, in particular since 2016, when the process was kick-started by my colleague, the then Minister, Deputy Ring. At the time, the existing list was eaten into and serious progress was made to clear it. Local authorities made a new call a couple of years ago and there is a significant list again for which more funding is needed. Last year, €10.5 million was provided initially by the State for local improvement schemes throughout the country. The money was distributed to local authorities. My understanding is the allocation was based on the area of the counties applying. A further €10.5 million was subsequently provided, bringing the total to €21 million, as a result of the reprofiling of capital within the Department of Rural and Community Development. The funding was again distributed to local authorities based on their request for funding. A certain percentage of the funding was provided. However, it is only a drop in the ocean in terms of the number of roads that can be addressed compared with the number that are awaiting funding.

My understanding is the budget is €11 million this year, which is an increase on the €10.5 million that was allocated last year, but it will only go so far. My county got just under €700,000, which is very welcome, but it only covers a very small percentage of the roads awaiting funding. I ask that we examine whether further capital funding in the Department of Rural and Community Development can be reprofiled and provided for local improvement scheme roads. When funding is provided, we know it is used by the local authorities. Very often, these roads lead to important amenities in communities such as lakes, mountains and trails, which are vital in terms of well-being and people being able to enjoy the outdoor amenities in communities. It is not simply the case that they go to people's homes. I ask that more funding would be provided, at least a further €11 million and, if possible, a lot more.

We used to have the bóithre áise scheme in the Gaeltacht areas. Now, more than ever, the funding for local improvement schemes is important to try to address the deficiencies in non-council roads in those Gaeltacht areas also.

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I thank Deputy Griffin for raising the matter. The Minister for Rural and Community Development, Deputy Humphreys, has asked me to respond on her behalf.

The local improvement scheme is a programme for improvement works on small private or non-public roads in rural areas that are not under the normal maintenance of the local authorities. The scheme is funded by the Department of Rural and Community Development and is administered through the local authorities. I acknowledge the major step-up in funding when Deputy Ring was Minister in the Department, and a lot of funding was provided. Many of the long application lists in local authorities were substantially tackled as a result of the additional funding during those years. The focus of the scheme is to support the continued improvement of rural roads and laneways that are not normally maintained by local authorities but which represent a vital piece of infrastructure for rural residents.

The LIS was relaunched in its own right in 2017. Between 2017 and 2021, the Department allocated €80 million to local authorities for improvement works on these roads. It is acknowledged how important the scheme is for people in rural areas and for farm families in particular. There is no other source of funding for these roads, which provide vital access to agricultural lands and rural homes. The scheme is also used to fund non-public roads leading to important community amenities such as graveyards, beaches, piers, mountain access points or other tourism and heritage sites.

The Department of Rural and Community Development provides an allocation of funding each year to the local authorities for works on these roads. The selection of roads to be funded under the scheme is then a matter for each local authority based on the priority or condition of particular roads in their county. The local authority may rely on existing lists of eligible roads or advertise for new applicant roads. The practice varies from county to county in that regard. Some local authorities have been successful in clearing the backlog and they have opened up the scheme to new applications to be considered for next year, whereas others have a long list that may have existed for a decade in some cases, and they are working down through the list. Applications are a matter for individual local authorities depending on their existing waiting lists.

Individual applicants contribute towards the cost of the road projects. As Deputy Griffin is aware, this can vary from 10% to 15% depending on how many beneficiaries are on the particular road. This contribution is currently capped at €1,200. However, the majority of beneficiary contributions were well below this figure. As part of Our Rural Future, the Government has committed to increasing the level of investment in the repair of non-public roads through the local improvement scheme.

Given the value of the scheme for people living in rural areas, the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, was pleased to be in a position to increase the allocation for the scheme this year. Funding for the scheme in 2021 increased by 5% to €10.5 million and the Minister has secured a further €500,000 to bring the allocation to €11 million for 2022. I can also confirm to the Deputy that the Minister has recently written again to the Minister for Transport, Deputy Ryan, to explore whether funding can be made available from the Department of Transport to support the scheme. It is believed a cross-Government approach might reap dividends in dealing with the backlog of applications on hand, and the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, together with her officials, will continue to keep all options under review. She highlighted that there is a contribution cap of €1,200, that the contribution of most people is below that figure and that the amount of contribution is quite small. We all know from our own experience that sometimes the contribution can be by way of work-in-kind in the local community, such as clearing ditches or banks or some such work. It does not always have to be cash. Local authorities have methods of dealing with the issue in terms of work in lieu of a cash contribution.

Brendan Griffin (Kerry, Fine Gael)
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Mar a dúirt mé, bhí scéim na mbóithre áise ann roimhe do na ceantair Ghaeltachta agus bhí sé sin an-tábhachtach do mhuintir na Gaeltachta chun na bóithre sin a chothabháil. Anois tá na bóithre sin ag dul in olcas mar níl go leor airgead ann faoin LIS. Tá sé níos tábhachtaí anois níos mó airgid a thabhairt chun gach bóthar, sna Gaeltachtaí agus taobh amuigh de na Gaeltachtaí, a chothabháil agus a fheabhsú.

I wish to take up a point in the final paragraph of the response on the cross-Government approach. This is something I suggested previously. I am pleased the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, has progressed it. There is an obligation on the Department of Transport to chip in. It is a large Department with a massive capital budget and there is great scope for it to make a contribution, which would be small in the overall context of the Department of Transport's budget. It would make a significant difference to the local improvement scheme. This is ultimately a transport issue. It is about people getting from A to B by whatever mode of transport they can possibly use, yet the Department is abdicating its responsibility to contribute to the upkeep of the roads. The roads may not be council roads, but they are used by everybody. It is a cop-out for the Department of Transport not to contribute to them. I again call on the Department of Transport to step up to the plate and contribute to the LIS because it makes a difference to everybody. The Department of Transport cannot simply give it to the Department of Rural and Community Development and say it is not its business. That is not in any way the approach the Department of Transport should take on this issue. I call for an increased budget, extra capital from the Department of Rural and Community Development and for the Department of Transport also to give extra capital to try finally to clear the list.

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I concur with the point made by the Deputy. As he said, the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, has been in direct contact with her ministerial colleague, Deputy Ryan, about the Department of Transport coming on board with this scheme. The Deputy specifically mentioned the Gaeltacht scheme and I know his views will be taken into account fully by the Minister. It does not affect me in County Laois and I am not personally familiar with the scheme. I presume it works along similar lines in the Gaeltacht areas. As we have said, the fact there was no specific fund for this contributed to the backlog over a number of years. In 2017, allocations were made and €80 million has been given for 3,000 roads being improved to benefit 13,000 rural landowners and residents in that period.

The issue of reprofiling unused capital funding is a very good suggestion for both Departments. All of us from rural areas know the value of this for people going to lakes, mountains or bogs or into forests, although they may not live in that area. It is important funding would be increased in that respect. When a council has done work on a road, maybe once over ten years, and comes back again, eventually people think of public roads not yet taken in charge by a local authority. Local authorities may be slow to take charge of some roads in these areas, having completed the work. It is a matter that will have to be addressed by local authorities. I will convey the Deputy's views directly to both Ministers today.