Written answers
Thursday, 26 October 2017
Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government
Traveller Accommodation
Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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270. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the number of additional public Traveller accommodation units provided in 2016 and to date in 2017, by county, in tabular form; the Traveller accommodation budget allocations in each of the years 2016 to 2018; and if his Department's target for Traveller accommodation units to be delivered in 2018 will meet its projected demand. [45453/17]
Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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In accordance with the Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act 1998, housing authorities have statutory responsibility for the assessment of the accommodation needs of Travellers and the preparation, adoption and implementation of multi-annual Traveller Accommodation Programmes (TAPs) in their areas. My Department’s role is to ensure that there are adequate structures and supports in place to assist the authorities in providing such accommodation, including a national framework of policy, legislation and funding.
The current round of TAPs were adopted in 2014, with the five-year rolling programmes running from 2014 to 2018. The allocations and recoupment profiles for capital Traveller accommodation projects can vary across local authorities given the local priorities, circumstances and project timelines as set out in the TAPs.
Local authorities submit funding proposals for individual Traveller-specific projects and developments (such as group housing schemes and halting sites) on an annual basis, which are assessed on a case-by-case basis in my Department. These proposals and assessments inform the capital allocation process. Provision of €12m has been made in Budget 2018 toward Traveller-specific accommodation. On receipt of all proposals, allocations for 2018 and the number of units to be delivered in all local authority areas will be finalised early next year. In addition, further funding allocations may be considered by my Department throughout the year, also on a case by case basis, in the light of progress across the programme generally and to ensure maximum drawdown of total funding allocated.
The allocations for 2016 and 2017 along with the number of units provided in 2016 and to date in 2017 are set out in the following tables
| Council | Allocation 2016 € | Allocation 2017 € |
|---|---|---|
| Carlow | 130,000 | 207,905.41 |
| Cavan | 8,600 | 13,729.31 |
| Clare | 200,000 | 169,194.00 |
| Cork City | 400,000 | 1,108,344.00 |
| Cork County | 30,000 | 110,000.00 |
| Donegal | 82,000 | 147,612.81 |
| Dublin City | 1,405,198 | 414,829.00 |
| Dun Laoghaire / Rathdown | 419,095 | 1,500,000.00 |
| Fingal | 26,842 | 26,847.00 |
| South Dublin | 63,000 | 1,024,289.00 |
| Galway City | 40,000 | 209,000.00 |
| Galway County | 117,000 | 625,000.00 |
| Kerry | 57,000 | 28,566.13 |
| Kildare | 200,000 | 80,000.00 |
| Kilkenny | 377,500 | 582,162.00 |
| Laois | Nil | Nil |
| Leitrim | 18,800 | 98,875.00 |
| Limerick City & County | 81,000 | 69,576.00 |
| Longford | 2,900 | 2,922.00 |
| Louth | Nil | 237,087.00 |
| Mayo | Nil | Nil |
| Meath | 120,000 | 129,000.00 |
| Monaghan | Nil | Nil |
| Offaly | 73,000 | 847,917.00 |
| Roscommon | 50,000 | 52,617.00 |
| Sligo | Nil | 161,249.00 |
| Tipperary | 900,000 | 327,492.00 |
| Waterford City & County | 263,000 | 545,000.00 |
| Westmeath | 208,000 | Nil |
| Wexford | 96,000 | 6,880.00 |
| Wicklow | 46,000 | 52,648.00 |
| TOTAL | 5,414,935 | 8,778,742 |
| Council | 2016 Total Units | 2017 Total Units (to date) |
|---|---|---|
| Carlow | 0 | 3 |
| Cavan | 1 | 20 |
| Clare | 0 | 0 |
| Cork City | 3 | 0 |
| Cork County | 0 | 0 |
| Donegal | 1 | 0 |
| Dublin City | 9 | 8 |
| Dun Laoghaire / Rathdown | 1 | 4 |
| Fingal | 0 | 0 |
| South Dublin | 3 | 0 |
| Galway City | 1 | 0 |
| Galway County | 4 | 0 |
| Kerry | 3 | 26 |
| Kildare | 0 | 0 |
| Kilkenny | 8 | 1 |
| Laois | 0 | 0 |
| Leitrim | 2 | 0 |
| Limerick City & County | 2 | 0 |
| Longford | 0 | 0 |
| Louth | 10 | 0 |
| Mayo | 0 | 0 |
| Meath | 0 | 1 |
| Monaghan | 0 | 0 |
| Offaly | 1 | 1 |
| Roscommon | 1 | 0 |
| Sligo | 0 | 0 |
| Tipperary | 4 | 0 |
| Waterford City & County | 1 | 0 |
| Westmeath | 1 | 0 |
| Wexford | 3 | 0 |
| Wicklow | 0 | 2 |
| TOTAL | 59 | 66 |
Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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271. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if he has instructed Galway City Council as a relevant housing authority under the Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act, 1998 to amend or replace its accommodation programme for the purpose of addressing the Traveller accommodation crisis in the city. [45454/17]
Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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272. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the action his Department will take in circumstances in which a local authority does not meet its responsibilities as set out in the Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act 1998. [45455/17]
Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 271 and 272 together.
In accordance with the Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act 1998, housing authorities have statutory responsibility for the assessment of the accommodation needs of Travellers and the preparation, adoption and implementation of multi-annual Traveller Accommodation Programmes (TAPs) in their areas. These are five-year rolling programmes, with the current programme running from 2014 to 2018, which provide a road map for housing authority investment priorities over the period. My Department’s role is to ensure that there are adequate structures and supports in place to assist the authorities in providing such accommodation, including a national framework of policy, legislation and funding.
The Act also requires housing authorities to review their TAPs at least once in each three-year period, and to make any amendment to the programme following this review within seven months. Housing authorities were therefore required to carry out a review of the current round of TAPs no later than 31 December 2016, and all authorities did so. Following their review, Galway City Council has informed my Department that they adopted an amended TAP in September 2017.
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