Seán Fleming (Laois, Fianna Fail)
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81. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the discussion that took place in his Department in 2015 regarding a figure of €2.3 million for the open library initiative in the 2016 Estimates; when the first public announcement was made on this issue; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30125/16]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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An allocation of €2.3m has been provided for the continued roll-out of the My Open Libraryservice as part of my Department’s Libraries Capital Investment Programme 2016-2021. The programme was officially launched in January 2016 by the then Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government. The programme builds on funding provided by the Department in previous years to support the development of library infrastructure by local authorities. The programme will contribute €22m towards the cost of new library developments by local authorities over the period.

Programme funding was agreed as part of the annual Estimates process and in the context of the capital funding available to my Department. The primary focus was to maximise the number of projects funded, while ensuring the amount allocated to each project was sufficient for those projects to proceed. This is reflected in the allocation of almost €20m to major capital developments under the programme.

A smaller allocation was provided for the extension of the My Open Library service, with €300,000 allocated for 2016 and €400,000 for each of the five subsequent years. Funding is allocated to libraries on the basis of applications received from local authorities interested in rolling out the service in their respective areas.

Taking account of slower than expected progress on certain other elements of the overall programme, my Department is in now a position to accelerate the roll-out of the My Open Library service in 2016. An estimated €1.3m will be invested in the service in 2016 with the remaining allocation of €1m invested over the period 2017-2021.