Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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Question 335: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the total funding available under the capital loan assistance scheme; the extent to which this fund is committed for 2011; if new projects are envisaged; his plans to continue the scheme in 2012; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25676/11]

Willie Penrose (Longford-Westmeath, Labour)
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Under my Department's Capital Loan and Subsidy Scheme (CLSS), mortgage finance is provided to approved housing bodies by way of loans from the Housing Finance Agency (HFA) to meet the cost of providing social rented accommodation for low-income families.

Following detailed consideration of the range of social housing supply options available under my Department's Social Housing Investment Programme, and taking account of the recommendations contained in the Report of the Special Group on Public Service Numbers and Expenditure Programmes and in the report on the Strategic Review of the Capital Funding Schemes for Voluntary and Co-operative Housing carried out by independent consultants, a decision was taken in 2009 to wind down the CLSS scheme by end 2011.

Loan finance will be provided by the HFA in 2011 to meet commitments in respect of projects which are currently underway. Current funding of €71 million is being provided this year to meet local authority loan repayments to the HFA and the payment of the annual management and maintenance subsidy to approved housing bodies in respect of projects completed under the CLSS.

As the CLSS has been terminated, local authorities no longer accept applications for new projects. However, certain approved housing bodies may now borrow directly from the HFA for the purposes of providing additional housing units to meet the accommodation needs of persons on local authority housing waiting lists.

Capital funding of up to 100% of the approved cost of projects will continue to be provided to approved housing bodies under my Department's Capital Assistance Scheme for the provision of accommodation for groups with specific categories of housing need such as older people, people with a physical, intellectual or a mental health disability, and homeless persons.