David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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502. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the amount of the €5 million pilot scheme under the warmer homes scheme whereby persons that have a medical illness can have their homes upgraded which will be provided by Waterford city and county; if he is aware that the Waterford energy bureau are aware of at least 50 private homes which would benefit under this scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16785/16]

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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The Warmth and Wellbeing  pilot scheme is an initiative under the Government’s Strategy to Combat Energy Poverty and the Healthy Ireland Framework. The scheme is one of a number of measures outlined in the Strategy which aims to alleviate energy poverty among our most vulnerable citizens. Its objective is to better understand how we can improve health and wellbeing  by making homes warmer and more energy efficient. The scheme has been developed by my Department in close cooperation with the Department of Health and is being operated by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) and the HSE. €20m has been ear-marked by my Department for the scheme in the period 2016 to 2018, of which €4m will be spent this year. As it is a pilot scheme, eligibility is necessarily limited. In 2016, the scheme is targeting people over 55, living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or asthma, in the Dublin 12 and Dublin 24 areas, living in either an owner-occupied, local authority or approved housing association house and who are in receipt of or eligible for the Fuel Allowance. The geographical area and clinical criteria for the scheme were identified in close cooperation with the HSE. Once the HSE has approved an application, a range of measures will be carried out by SEAI including, wall and attic insulation, heating system upgrades, installation of heating controls and other measures deemed appropriate to bring the house to a high level of energy efficiency. The number of participants will depend on the condition of the homes of those participating and the resulting cost per home.

While the focus this year is on alleviating the chronic conditions in older people, the aim is to expand the scope of the scheme in 2017 to children with asthma who are also at risk of energy poverty to establish how energy efficiency can also be used to help prevent these conditions developing in the first place.  For the longer term, to determine the scheme's effectiveness, an important part of the scheme is a research and evaluation project which will gather the evidence necessary to inform decisions on a future national roll-out.

I welcome the Deputy's engagement on this important initiative and his understanding of the need to support those at risk of energy poverty in his constituency.  On-going engagement with stakeholders beyond the immediate reach of this particular pilot scheme will be a very important part of the process to develop the case for wider action, and I look forward to keeping Deputies informed of progress. While the Warmth & Wellbeing project is limited in scope at present, free energy efficiency upgrades are available to those at risk of energy poverty under the Better Energy Warmer Homes scheme, which is also run by SEAI.