Paddy McHugh (Galway East, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 654: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if funding will be made available for a project (details supplied) in County Galway; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34240/05]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Galway County Council wrote to my Department in July 2005 outlining its plans to advance the development of regional offices in Tuam and Loughrea with an anticipated borrowing requirement of €5.5 million. My Department has sought further information from Galway County Council and as soon as this information is received consideration of the application will be advanced.

Breeda Moynihan-Cronin (Kerry South, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 655: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the amount of funding allocated to each local authority in 2004 and to date in 2005 for the disabled person's grants scheme; the amount of unspent money returned by each local authority in 2004 and to date in 2005; the reason for this unspent money being returned; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34241/05]

Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 684: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the level of funding that has been returned to his Department by local authorities with regard to the disabled persons and essential repairs grants; the local authorities which have returned such funding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34568/05]

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I propose to take Questions Nos. 655 and 684 together.

A tabular statement gives details of the combined capital allocation for disabled persons and essential repairs grants notified to each local authority in 2004, the combined expenditure on the schemes in 2004 by each local authority and the combined capital allocations for both schemes notified to authorities in 2005. In 2004 the capital allocation for these schemes was €73.1 million and actual expenditure notified to the Department by local authorities was €55.4 million. The capital allocation notified to authorities for 2005 is €70 million and details of expenditure on the schemes this year will not be available until early 2006.

The combined capital allocation to local authorities for the disabled persons and essential repairs grant schemes represents not a capital grant, but the total amount that authorities are authorised to spend on the schemes in the year in which the allocation is made. Expenditure on the grant schemes is funded by the two thirds recoupment available from my Department together with the one third contribution from the revenue resources of the local authority.

Local authorities were notified in June last of their combined capital allocation for 2005 and were requested to notify the Department if it became evident that the allocation notified was likely to be inadequate or surplus to requirements. The Department wrote to local authorities in August stressing the need to ensure that, in the light of the high level of demand for these grants, the available allocation is expended in full and to ensure that the level of their approvals was such that would facilitate expenditure of the full allocation. Authorities were again requested to examine the level of payments and approvals on both schemes at that stage with a view to establishing the adequacy or otherwise of their 2005 allocations.

Requests for increases from authorities whose allocations are proving inadequate are being dealt with in the context of the surplus funding available from those authorities whose allocation is surplus to their requirements. My Department will continue to monitor expenditure patterns for the schemes over the remainder of the year with the aim of ensuring the maximum utilisation of available resources for the schemes.