Olwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Question 224: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government when he will make money available to the Health Service Executive in County Offaly to enable the completion of the housing aid for the elderly scheme applications; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that there are approximately 200 elderly waiting to have work done, some since 2007; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17449/10]

Olwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Question 225: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government when he will make money available to the Health Service Executive in County Laois to enable the completion of the housing aid for the elderly scheme applications; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that there are approximately 200 elderly waiting to have work done, some since 2007; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17450/10]

Michael Finneran (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 224 and 225 together.

On foot of a Government Decision, taken in February 2006, to transfer the administration of the Special Housing Aid for the Elderly Scheme (SHAE) from the Health Service Executive (HSE) to the local authority sector, a revised suite of Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and People with a Disability was implemented on 1 November, 2007. The revised schemes target available resources to those in most need, streamline operational and administrative procedures and ensure equity and consistency of operation across all local authority areas.

In order to facilitate transitional arrangements, it was agreed between my Department and the HSE that the SHAE scheme would be discontinued from 1 August 2008 and that the HSE would process and approve the applications on hand at that date. All new applications in respect of grant assistance for home repairs and improvements with effect from 1 August 2008 would be directed to the local authorities and dealt with under the provisions of the Housing Aid for Older People scheme. My Department provided a total of €14.7 million to the HSE in 2008 for the operation of the SHAE scheme. In July 2009, following consultation with the HSE, my Department provided a further €3.5 million in respect of the remaining claims on hand in all HSE regions, including the Dublin Mid Leinster region.