Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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251. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development the reason the local improvement scheme for 2021 requires that one of the applicants is a farmer at a time when a smaller proportion of the rural population is engaged in farming and that many rural dwellers live on roads that have never been taken in charge by the local authority in their area; the reason if two or more landholders have land adjacent to an existing non-council road and there is at least one house on this section of road is not eligible for the scheme; the consultations she has had with local authority and members of Dáil Éireann in rural Ireland on this stipulation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [2040/21]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The Local Improvement Scheme, or LIS, is a programme for improvement works on small private or non-public roads in rural areas which are not under the normal maintenance of the Local Authorities.  The scheme is funded by my Department and is administered through the relevant Local Authorities.

The scheme provides Exchequer funding for the construction or improvement of non-public roads which:

- Provide access to parcels of land of which two or more are owned or occupied by different persons engaged in separate agricultural activities; or 

- Provide access for harvesting purposes (including turf or seaweed) for two or more persons; or

- Provide access to at least one parcel of land owned or occupied by a person engaged in agricultural activities and which separately provides access for harvesting purposes (including turf or seaweed) for at least one other person.

In addition, works can also be carried out on Amenity Roads. Amenity Roads are non-public roads leading to important community amenities such as graveyards, beaches and piers. Such roads may not account for more than 25% of the allocation provided to each Local Authority.

The scheme is specifically provided for in legislation (section 81 of the Local Government Act 2001) and the stipulation with regard to parcels of land and harvesting activity is covered under that Act. The presence or otherwise of residential occupancy on a road does not affect the eligibility of the road once the other conditions are met.

The 2002 Department of Environment Memo which governed the Scheme was revised in 2020 following consultation with all of the Local Authorities.  It should be noted that the changes introduced on foot of the consultation are those of an administrative nature to make the provisions clearer, to clarify issues where concerns had arisen previously, or to confirm existing practice which may not have been explicitly referenced in the Department of Environment Memo.  

It should be noted that the 2002 Memo clearly stated that roads serving only houses or buildings occupied or used by persons not engaged in agriculture did not comply with the conditions of the Scheme.

Since the scheme was re-launched in 2017, over €58 million has been allocated to Local Authorities for improvements to over 2,300 qualifying roads under the scheme. This funding has made a significant difference to the access provided by these roads for over 10,000 beneficiaries.  

Recognising the value of the scheme for people living in rural areas, I secured an increase in the allocation for the Local Improvement Scheme in Budget 2021.  Funding for the scheme this year will increase by 5%, to €10.5 million. 

The conditions pertaining to the scheme are reviewed each year prior to the scheme being launched. The details of the 2021 LIS will be announced in the coming months when I formally launch the scheme.