Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Socialist Party)
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48. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the aggregate annual costs and cost per household from 2008 to 2013 to the Exchequer of the various rent allowance and rent supplement schemes. [33043/14]

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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150. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the total expenditure by her Department on rent supplement and mortgage supplement, respectively, in each year since 2010, including 2014 to the end of August; the reasons for the change in the amounts paid; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34507/14]

Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South East, Independent)
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157. To ask the Minister for Social Protection if she will provide in tabular form the number of recipients of rent supplement in the Dublin city area for the years 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 and to date in 2014; the absolute amount of rent supplement paid by her Department in each of these periods; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34692/14]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 48, 150 and 157 together.

The Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS) is a targeted scheme catering for the accommodation needs of persons in receipt of Rent Supplement from the Department of Social Protection, generally for more than 18 months, and who are assessed as having a long-term housing need.

From its inception in 2004 up to the end of June 2014 expenditure totalling some €707.1million has been incurred under the scheme, while some 49,788 households with a long-term housing need have been transferred from Rent Supplement to RAS and other social housing solutions.

Transfers from rent supplement are made up of private transfers (that is private rented accommodation provided by private landlords), transfers to voluntary housing and transfers to local authority housing.

The following table sets out the total annual expenditure, the total numbers transferred from Rent Supplement between 2008 and end June 2014, and the number of those who transferred to Private Rented Accommodation.