Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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The Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS) has been an important contributor to social housing supply since its introduction in 2005 and has placed responsibility on local authorities to meet the accommodation needs of people in receipt of Rent Supplement for 18 months or longer, and who are assessed as having a long-term housing need.

The scheme is delivered by local authorities who source accommodation from the private market and Approved Housing Bodies. At the end of 2021, 17,183 households were supported by RAS and expenditure on the scheme in 2021 was just under €122m.

My Department publishes comprehensive statistics on social housing delivery, including the Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS), on a quarterly basis on its website. The statistics requested by the Deputy in relation to the RAS spend over each of the last five years is available at the following link - www.gov.ie/en/collection/6060e-overall-social-housing-provision/?referrer=http://www.housing.gov.ie/housing/social-housing/social-and-affordble/overall-social-housing-provision#rental-accommodation-scheme-ras.

RAS continues to be an effective and secure form of social housing support, and remains a part of the suite of social housing options currently available to those who are assessed as being in need of housing support.

Under the Housing for All strategy, the Government plans to increase the supply of housing to an average of 33,000 homes per year over the next decade, including an average of 10,000 new build social homes. As new build supply of social housing ramps up, there will be reducing reliance on the RAS scheme.