Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government if and when he expects to be in a position to introduce a local authority loans system to facilitate the needs of first time house buyers in the medium to lower income sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54560/12]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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I refer to the replies to Questions Nos. 111 of 15 September 2011, 143 of 8 March 2012, 222 of 3 May 2012 and 454 of 23 October 2012. The position is unchanged: loan finance remains available from local authorities for low and middle income borrowers and no funding restrictions have been placed on local authorities for the purposes of providing loan finance for house purchase or home improvement. Indeed the amount available has increased significantly in recent years. The allocation of €55m for 2012 represented an increase of 8% on the allocation for 2011 which was itself an increase of almost €20m (or 61%) on the 2010 allocation.