Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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235. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will make funding available under the local improvement scheme to local authorities in 2014; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7080/14]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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On 23 January 2014, I announced details of the €332.9 million investment programme for regional and local roads. I can confirm that the Local Improvement Scheme remains in place for 2014;  however there is no separate allocation available towards this grant category.  Instead local authorities may use up to 15% of their initial Discretionary Grant (up from 7% in 2013) towards local improvement schemes should they wish to do so.  Some local authorities want the LIS, others prefer to put the money into public roads. I think this decision is best made locally by the councillors themselves.

The total grant to local authorities for Discretionary Grant was €70m for 2014. The table below sets out the amount allocated to each local authority under this grant as well as the maximum permissible spend from this heading on local improvement schemes.