Frank Feighan (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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1409. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development if he plans to make an allocation of funding to local authorities under the LIS scheme in 2025; and if he will seek match funding from the Minister for Transport to boost the funding allocation to assist local authorities in reducing their LIS waiting lists. [3236/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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The Programme for Government commits to the support of rural communities including a commitment to increase funding under the Local Improvement Scheme (LIS). LIS supports improving non-public rural roads and laneways not usually maintained by local authorities. Since its establishment in 2017, almost €170 million has been provided by Government to local authorities for LIS and this includes funding allocated for the period 2024/2025. This funding has resulted in improvement works on nearly 4,500 roads, benefitting over 20,000 landowners and residents in these rural areas.

I am conscious of the important supports provided to rural communities under the LIS, and I will be engaging with my colleague the Minister for Transport to request that his Department make a contribution to co-funding the scheme.