The closing date for receipt of applications by the Red Cross is 6 December. Following this, the Red Cross will commence the process of evaluating applications and visiting all applicants to assess need. Payments will commence a number of weeks later. The scheme will be funded from within existing financial allocations to the Office of Public Works. The extent of funding required will become apparent in the next few days as applications are received and more information is collated on the extent of damage caused. Recent comments in the media suggest that approval of funding for the scheme somehow represents a reversal of Government decisions on the Estimates. This is not the case. These schemes are, of their nature, entirely unpredictable and it is not the practice to provide for them in advance in the Estimates.