Francis Noel Duffy (Dublin South West, Green Party)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

351. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the sources of funding for the planned decarbonised zone activity and the support for project managers to enable local authorities to support this significant new activity. [54692/21]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Both the Climate Action Plan 2019 and Interim Climate Action Plan included an objective for Local Authorities to identify and develop Decarbonising Zones. My Department issued a circular to local authorities on 10 February 2021 asking each local authority to identify a decarbonising zone and to provide a broad outline of the main projects that could be implementable in the decarbonising zone plus an indication as to the potential outcomes deliverable in terms of reductions in carbon emissions.

There are as yet no specific funding streams identified for programmes of work to be undertaken in the identified decarbonising zones. As responsibility for Climate Mitigation measures rests with the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, it is a matter for that Department to oversee the development of the Decarbonising Zones and the funding of the required measures.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

352. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if it is planned to allocate additional funding resources to Galway County Council housing department to implement the government's ambitious programme Housing for All in view of the current staff deficit in the council and the lack of resources to fund additional staff; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54752/21]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The recently published Housing for All strategy is the Government’s plan to increase the supply of housing to an average of 33,000 per year over the next decade, supported by an investment package of over €4b per annum. The Government plans to deliver more than 90,000 social homes to 2030, with a focus on the social housing build programme, with a target to reach delivery of more than 9,500 new-build homes on average each year for the next five years to 2026.

Housing for All also includes a commitment to strengthen the capacity of local authorities to initiate, design, plan, develop and manage housing projects. Significant work has been undertaken to identify the additional staff resources required by local authorities to deliver the social housing targets set out in Housing for All. My Department will be providing resources to local authorities to allow for the recruitment of additional staff and will be notifying the local authorities of the arrangements in this regard in the coming weeks.