Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael)
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22. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government his plans to reduce the number of voids in local authority housing stock across the country; if he will provide details by local authority of the number of such voids; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11708/14]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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In 2014, funding of over €587 million is being made available across a range of housing programmes. This includes a €50 million capital stimulus to support construction and related programmes, of which some €15 million will be used to support a new social housing construction programme and €15 million for a targeted measure aimed at returning vacant and boarded-up local authority houses to productive use.

Returning vacant stock to use in as short a time as possible remains a key priority under my Department’s Social Housing Investment Programme. My Department has recently written to local authorities advising that funding of up to €30,000 per dwelling will be provided for a suite of retrofitting works to bring vacant properties back to a high standard. Funding will be allocated on the basis of equitable and evidence based criteria which reflect the merit and cost effectiveness of proposals and the degree of local housing need. Local authorities are required to submit proposals to my Department by 28 March, 2014. I intend to announce details of the funding allocations as soon as possible afterwards.

The Eighth Annual Report on Service Indicators, published by the Local G overnment Management Agency in April 2013, which details service indicators in local authorities in 2011, provides a range of information in relation to social housing stock including information in relation to vacant dwellings. Copies of the report are available from the Local Government Management Agency and may be downloaded from their website ().