Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Question 152: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government his policy regarding the construction of sheltered housing units; the funding that is provided for same; if he will list the organisations which he contracts to construct, maintain and operate sheltered housing; his future plans for this area; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36788/11]

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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The vision for the future of the housing sector in Ireland, as set in the Government's Housing Policy Statement published in June 2011, is based on choice, fairness, equity across tenures and on delivering quality outcomes for the resources invested. The overall strategic objective will be to enable all households access good quality housing, appropriate to household circumstances and in their particular community of choice.

The main focus in terms of housing supports provided by Government will be on meeting the most acute needs – the housing support needs of those unable to provide for their accommodation from their own resources. The financial parameters within which we will be operating for the coming years rule out a return to very large capital-funded construction programmes by local authorities.

The provision of sheltered housing is mainly funded through my Department's Capital Assistance Scheme (CAS), which will continue to provide capital funding for the provision, by approved housing bodies, of housing to meet the accommodation needs of persons with specific categories of need, including older people, people with a physical, intellectual or mental health disability and homeless persons. Given that individual approved housing bodies may cater for a range of special housing needs and considering that the accommodation provided by these bodies under the CAS may be multipurpose, it is not possible to disaggregate the expenditure figures to provide information in relation to any specific category such as sheltered housing.