Sandra McLellan (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government his plans to meet with leaders of the traveller community and local authorities to discuss the damaging effects of cuts to funding for traveller accommodation. [46198/12]

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 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, notwithstanding the continuing growth in the numbers of Traveller families nationally.

In the context of declining housing capital allocations, priority consideration will be given to meeting the housing needs of vulnerable groups, including Travellers . While the results of the March 2011 Housing Needs Assessment showed a very clear preference among Travellers for standard housing, funding for Traveller-specific accommodation continues to be provided, with €10 million being allocate for this purpose in 2012. The funding position for 2013 will be determined in the context of the overall budgetary provision for the social housing programme.

My Department maintains regular contact with the local authorities in relation to the implementation of their Traveller accommodation programmes. I am also advised by the statutory National Traveller Accommodation Consultative Committee (NTACC) in relation to Traveller accommodation matters more generally. The NTACC includes representatives of the Traveller organisations, local authority managers and my own Department. My Department recently completed meetings with each of the thirty four city and county councils to discuss their housing programme for this year and for 2013, including progress on implementing their Traveller accommodation programmes. I have no plans to convene a meeting , as proposed in the question, given the statutory role of the local authorities in planning and implementing agreed Traveller accommodation programmes locally and considering the existing consultation arrangements involving Traveller representatives, the local authorities and my Department.