Brendan Griffin (Kerry, Fine Gael)
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41. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development the rate of LIS completions per county to date in 2022; the outlook for 2023; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [62786/22]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The Local Improvement Scheme, or LIS, supports the improvement of rural roads and laneways that are not normally maintained by local authorities. As part of Our Rural Future, the Government is committed to ensuring that the LIS is funded into the future. The scheme makes an important contribution to connectivity in rural Ireland. I am also committed to improving connectivity for rural residents – whether it be access to homes, farms or outdoor amenities.

The Scheme was reintroduced by my Department in 2017 following a number of years with no dedicated funding. From 2017 to 2022, my Department has allocated over €100 million towards improvement works on over 3,600 non-public roads and lanes benefiting over 16,000 landowners and residents in these rural areas.

I launched the 2022 scheme with an initial budget of €11 million. Over the course of the year additional funding was sourced from savings within my Department and I allocated a further €11 million.

I was pleased, as part of Budget 2023, to announce an increase in the base funding for LIS to €12 million.

The table below sets out the position regarding the rate of LIS completions per county in 2022.