Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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289. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the number of persons on the social housing list in County Meath broken by area; his plans to address the lengthening waiting lists; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48354/13]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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My Department does not hold information on the number of households on local authority waiting lists. These figures fluctuate as households are allocated housing and new households apply for support.

In accordance with Section 21 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009, I directed all housing authorities to prepare a summary of social housing assessments carried out in their areas at 7 May 2013. The results of this assessment, when available, will detail the number of households on waiting lists in each local authority by a range of categories and will provide an important insight into the level and type of need for social housing support across the country.

The last summary assessment carried out, at 31 March, 2011, found that there were 98,318 households on local authority waiting lists. The full results of this assessment are available on on my Department’s website and the Housing Agency’s website .

The Government’s housing policy statement, published in June 2011, clearly identifies that the priority for Government will be to meet the most acute needs of households applying for social housing support. I am determined to ensure that the social housing programme optimises the delivery of social housing and the return for the resources invested. To achieve this, it is essential that we tailor the use of available Exchequer supports to prevailing conditions and explore the full range of solutions to address housing needs.

In spite of the current challenging circumstances, almost 70% of the budget for my Department will be allocated to support social housing in 2014 with an investment of over half a billion euro on a range of programmes. Meeting social housing need within the available resources will necessitate smarter and more innovative approaches in order to maximise output. In 2014, I will continue to focus the available resources towards the most vulnerable and disadvantaged sectors of the community.