John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein)
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108. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the number of times the discretionary top-up for housing assistance payments was used in 2021 in County Wicklow broken down by municipal district; and the average percentage amount of this top-up per municipal district. [8544/22]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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The Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) scheme plays a vital role in housing eligible families and individuals. At the end of Q3 2021, over 97,000 HAP tenancies had been set-up since the scheme commenced, of which there were more than 62,000 households actively in receipt of HAP support, including 1,708 households in Wicklow. 

Local authorities have discretion, because of local rental market conditions, to exceed the maximum rent limit by up to 20%, or up to 50% in the Dublin region for those households either in, or at immediate risk of homelessness. It is a matter for each local authority to determine whether the application of a discretionary increase is warranted, and the level of such an increase, on a case-by-case basis. 

A breakdown of the number of HAP tenancies at end Q3 2021 and the average discretionary increase paid for each of the municipal districts in Wicklow is detailed in the table below.