Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

448. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government if he will allocate additional funds for the provision of social housing across the country, and in County Wexford alone; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2005/16]

Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The national targets in respect of social housing have been set out in the Government’s Social Housing Strategy 2020, along with details of the financial resources to deliver those targets. The Strategy provides a comprehensive response to the need for social housing and targets the provision of over 110,000 social housing units to 2020, through the delivery of 35,000 new social housing units and meeting the housing needs of some 75,000 households through the Housing Assistance Payment and Rental Accommodation Scheme. In line with the prioritisation of funding for social housing, the overall Exchequer provision for Housing has increased by almost €145 million in 2016, so that the combined capital and current housing allocation is almost €821 million across a range of housing programmes. In addition, local authorities will fund a range of housing services from their own resources to the value of over €112 million, bringing the total Housing provision in 2016 to €933 million. This year will also see continued expansion in social housing provision under the Social Housing Strategy, with over 17,000 new homes to be delivered this year under a range of social housing initiatives.

Targets and provisional funding allocations for delivery under my Department’s main capital and current programmes were issued to all local authorities, including Wexford County Council, in April 2015. The targets are for the period out to 2017 and the available funding is being invested in a combination of building, buying and leasing schemes by the local authorities designed to accommodate 25% of those currently on the housing waiting lists. Wexford County has a target of 677 units, supported by €25.4m of investment, broken down as follows:

The detailed implementation of the programmes and projects to deliver on these targets is a matter for each individual local authority, but I am confident that good progress is being made in their achievement. To date I have announced new social housing construction projects to the value of approximately half a billion euros, including 54 new units for Wexford at a cost estimate of €7.3 million, and I will be making further announcements shortly. Details of the projects I have already announced are available on my Department’s website at the following links:

Given the time-lag between approval and delivery in terms of construction projects, a successful programme to remediate vacant social housing units, as well as the acquisition by local authorities of properties through turn-key developments and other purchases, have been important parts of social housing delivery to date. I was determined that local authorities would have the opportunity to maximise the number of vacant units brought back into productive use and so, in 2015, I funded the remediation of some 2,700 units nationally.

I am confident that by utilising all delivery mechanisms available to them, local authorities will continue to deliver new social housing across all programmes in 2016.