Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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193. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government if he will provide an update on the time frames involved in allocating funds recently announced for local authorities to provide social housing; the way progress in this area will be checked and monitored with each local authority; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17112/15]

Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
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The social housing targets that I recently announced for all local authorities are out to 2017 and include almost 7,500 units that will be capital-funded and 15,400 current-funded units. My announcement also contained provisional funding allocations which are sufficient to deliver the targeted units.

The specific project approval and funding allocations to local authorities for new build and acquisition of social housing units will be based on the proposals they will be implementing to deliver social housing units, in line with the targets I announced. It is not a matter of simply allocating funding without having clear targets and projects for the delivery of new units by each local authority; funding allocations are being linked to delivery in a clear and firm way.

My Department has received proposals from the local authorities regarding their planned delivery of new social housing over the next 3 years and I will shortly announce approvals based on these proposals. I will be keen to see rapid progress thereafter and progress will be monitored via the governance structures that are in place under the Social Housing Strategy.