Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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292. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government if he will sanction the borrowing of extra money by Galway City Council to buy replacement land now as payment for the existing land will happen only on the completion of the CPO for the bypass, which might not happen for some years in view of the fact that the reserved corridor for the bypass of Galway goes through a large proportion of local authority land bought for social housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6081/17]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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It is a matter for Galway City Council in the first place to determine both its own need for land for social housing or any other purposes, and also their preferred means of acquiring such land. My Department will address any proposal received from the Council in relation to borrowing, having regard to all the circumstances that apply. This will include the need to make adequate provision for social housing requirements, the need for the local government sector to avoid impacting negatively on the General Government Balance in any one year and whether the finances of the local authority are likely to be sufficiently robust to enable them to service the borrowing sought.