Dessie Ellis (Dublin North West, Sinn Fein)
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173. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the number of new housing units built in Waterford city and county in each year from 2009 to 2014 and in 2015 to date; his plans to build new units specially in 2015. [16043/15]

Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
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My Department collates and publishes a wide range of housing statistics, including data on local authority housing completions and acquisitions for individual years, broken down by county. Statistics in relation to County Waterford up to and including 2014 are available at the following link: .

The Social Housing Strategy 2020targets the delivery of over 35,000 new social housing units over the period to 2020 and in that context, I recently announced social housing targets for all local authorities for the period 2015-2017. Each local authority has responsibility for identifying their area’s social housing need and responding as required, including planning and undertaking new social housing developments to meet this need and the targets now set. Of the 760 units that I announced for County Waterford City and County out to 2017, a target of 164 units has been set for delivery under capital programmes, which includes construction, acquisitions and returning vacant properties to productive use. This target has been notified to Waterford City and County Council.Proposals already made by local authorities for the development of social housing units have been assessed and a first phase of announcements of initial project approvals will be made shortly.

We are working with all local authorities to ensure that the projects proposed represent value for money and I will be monitoring progress on delivery of units and if satisfactory progress is not being made, I will reallocate funding between local authorities in order that national targets are achieved.