Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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273. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the full extent of expenditure in each of the past five years to date in respect of HAP support or rent support in lieu of local authority housing; the extent to which such annual expenditure can be replaced as capital investment in respect of local authority or affordable housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25845/19]

Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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I refer to the replies to Questions Nos 48 and 1003 on 11 June 2019.

As the Deputy will be aware, Rent Supplement comes within the remit of my colleague, the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection. As HAP is progressively replacing Rent Supplement for households with a long term housing need, the funding directed to Rent Supplement has decreased in recent years, as funding for HAP has increased. The table below has been supplied by the Department of Social Protection in relation to expenditure on Rent Supplement over the past five years.

It is important to note that the ongoing supports for tenants in the private rented sector is not "in lieu" of local authority housing. At the outset of Rebuilding Ireland, a clear ambition was set out to provide social housing supports to over 137,000 households. This is being delivered through a number of vehicles, including continuing to support households in rented accommodation under HAP and RAS and also more than 50,000 homes under build, acquisition and leasing programmes.