Pauline Tully (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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367. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if he has invited Cavan and Monaghan local authorities to make an application for the vacant properties' voids programme; if such an application has been submitted; the total amount of funding that his Department proposes to allocate to each authority; the expected timeframe for release of the funding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39117/22]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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The management and maintenance of local authority housing stock, including pre-letting repairs to vacant properties, the implementation of a planned maintenance programme and carrying out of responsive repairs, are matters for each individual local authority under Section 58 of the Housing Act 1966.

Notwithstanding this, my Department provides annual funding support to local authorities in preparing vacant units for re-let under the Voids Programme. This funding was introduced originally to tackle long term vacant units and is now increasingly targeted to support authorities to ensure minimal turnaround and re-let times for vacant stock.

From 2014 to 2021, expenditure of some €261 million was recouped to local authorities under the Voids Programme which funded the return to productive use of 18,527 properties nationwide.

My Department continues to support local authorities in their work remediating vacant social housing properties in 2022. This year funding of €25 million to support the refurbishment of c. 2,273 vacant properties is being made available and each individual local authority has been notified of their target number of units and funding allocation as per Circular 18/2022.

Cavan County Council has received an allocation of €594,000 to remediate 54 properties and Monaghan has received an allocation of €330,000 to remediate 30 properties. Both local authorities are progressing a programme of works based on their allocation. This funding is available immediately and will be recouped to the local authorities upon receipt of a valid claim.