Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government his policy on traveller housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46178/12]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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In accordance with the Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act 1998, statutory responsibility for the assessment of the accommodation needs of Travellers and the preparation, adoption and implementation of multi-annual Traveller accommodation programmes, designed to meet the accommodation needs of Travellers, rests with individual housing authorities. My Department’s role is to ensure that there is an adequate legislative and financial system in place to assist the authorities in providing such accommodation. The current round of Traveller Accommodation Programmes cover the period 2009 to 2013. My Department oversees the implementation, through the housing authorities, of these programmes. I am also advised by the statutory National Traveller Accommodation Consultative Committee in relation to Traveller accommodation matters more generally.

Accommodation for Travellers is provided across a range of options including standard local authority housing, which is financed from my Department’s capital allocation for social housing, private housing assisted by the housing authority or voluntary organisations, private rented accommodation and through their own resources. Travellers are free to express a preference for any form of accommodation through the assessment of housing needs process. The March 2011 Housing Needs Assessment showed a very clear preference among Traveller families for standard housing. Notwithstanding this, Traveller specific accommodation, such as halting sites and group housing schemes, continues to be provided by many local authorities where required. My Department provides 100% capital funding for Traveller-specific accommodation and also provides funding for accommodation-related supports to operate in tandem with the capital programme. A total of €10 million was allocated for this purpose in 2012. While the position regarding capital funding for my Department’s housing programme in 2013 has yet to be decided, delivering on the housing needs of vulnerable groups such as Travellers will continue to be a priority.

The Government remains committed to meeting the accommodation needs of Travellers. Since 2005, over €187 million has been expended for the provision of new, and refurbishment of existing, Traveller-specific accommodation. This is in addition to expenditure on standard local authority housing and other housing supports. The results of this substantial financial commitment are reflected in the significant reduction in the numbers of Traveller families on unauthorised sites, down from over 1,200 families in 2000 to 327 families in 2011. This was achieved at a time when the overall number of Traveller families increased from 4,790 to 9,535 over the same period.