Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 338: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if he will allocate or approve increases in the funding available to local authorities for disabled persons' grants and essential repair grants; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31236/06]

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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My Department had allocated €65 million for the funding of Disabled Persons and Essential Repairs Grant schemes in private houses in 2006. It is expected that a further €7 million will be spent this year on works of adaptation to make local authority rented houses more suitable for a disabled member of the household, bringing the total expenditure in the area to €72 million. I am satisfied that this significant level of funding is reasonable and this is reflected in the fact that all local authorities received the capital allocation requested by them in 2006.

My Department is continually monitoring expenditure patterns of local authorities for the schemes to ensure that the resources being made available are utilised to the maximum extent possible and in this regard an amount of €1.75m has already been reallocated to local authorities this year.