Could I ask the Chair's indulgence to share some of my time with my Minister of State?
Estimates 1991 (Resumed).
Debate resumed on the following Estimates which were moved by the Minister for Finance (Mr. A. Reynolds) on Friday, 5 July 1991: Votes 1 to 3, inclusive, 5 to 44, inclusive; and Supplementary Estimates, Votes 2 and 39.
Acting Chairman
Agreed? Agreed.
Is áthas liom an deis seo a bheith agam chun an caiteachas sna Meastacháin Chomhshaoil a phlé. Ach i dtosach báire, ba mhaith liom cúpla focal a rá faoi staid cúrsaí airgeadais na tíre i gcoitinne.
The debate on this year's Estimates is taking place against a background of discussion and controversy about the state of the economy and the Government's performance in managing the public finances. I would like, therefore, to take this opportunity of putting a few facts on the record before going into the details of my Department's 1991 Estimate.
The first point to be made, in comparing this year with the record of the past few years, is that we must remember that the latter period saw the most dramatic turnaround ever in this country's economic performance. Back in 1986, we had zero growth, a balance of payments crisis, a record current budget deficit and a national debt which had almost doubled in four years. Since then strict control of the public finances, allied to imaginative measures which stimulated economic growth, has turned around all the critical indicators to reflect the very healthy state of our economy.
By the end of 1990, public expenditure had fallen to around 42 per cent of GNP as compared with 55 per cent in 1986. The Exchequer borrowing requirement fell from 12.8 per cent in 1986 to 2 per cent in 1990. Our competitiveness in world markets has improved markedly. We have a stable exchange rate within the EMS and one of the lowest inflation rates in the world — at slightly more than 3 per cent, it is well below the forecast EC average of 5 per cent for 1991. We have had sizeable balance of payments surpluses in each of the past four years as compared with a huge deficit in 1986. Overall, as the Taoiseach pointed out to the House yesterday, we have been classified by a reputable journal as the fifth healthiest economy in the world.
The 1991 budget was designed to build on the achievements of recent years but it had to be framed against a difficult and uncertain international background, with unpredictable prospects for world growth. We acknowledged that at the time. No one was left in any doubt that, if economic conditions proved to be less favourable than projected, we would not be found wanting in taking the necessary decisions to keep the public finances on the right track.
While we have undoubtedly seen slippage from the budget figures, we must keep things in perspective. Our situation is not unique. Three of the largest and strongest EC economies, Germany, France and Italy, are finding it necessary to make mid-term corrections in their public finances because of international trading conditions. Secondly, even if our overrun were to reach £200 million, that would still be much less than one per cent of GNP and we would still reduce the debt/GNP ratio this year below the 1990 level of 111 per cent which, let us not forget, is a massive improvement on the levels of 131 per cent reached in 1987 and 1988.
A downturn in international trading conditions inevitably impacts on an open economy such as ours. Despite this, we are still continuing to grow — forecasts from independent commentators are in the range of 1¼ to 2¼ per cent growth this year, compared with projected average growth of OECD member states of about 1.1 per cent and average EC growth of 1.4 per cent. The fact that we are still experiencing above average growth in the face of adverse trading conditions confirms that our economic fundamentals are in order and that we have a basically healthy economy. This Government are determined to maintain that situation and our management of the public finances will continue to be guided by that objective.
Turning to my Department's 1991 Estimate, I should remind the House that it amounts to nearly six hundred million pounds, an increase of over £22 million or 4 per cent, on the 1990 expenditure outturn. This aggregate increase includes some large increases such as road expenditure, up £18 million or 8 per cent; public water supply and sewerage expenditure, up nearly £3 million or 4 per cent, and local authority and social housing programmes, up nearly £30 million or 145 per cent. These increases are offset, in part, by reduced spending in other areas, mainly on private house improvement grants, where the last major instalment of the cost of this scheme was paid in 1990, bringing the total to roughly £200 million.
Over 90 per cent of the funds provided in this Estimate will be paid to local authorities as grants and subsidies to enable them to provide essential services and to invest in major capital projects. Only 3.5 per cent of the gross Estimate is absorbed by the Department's own operating expenses — salaries, travelling, premises, postal and telephone services and so on — and roughly one fifth of that will be recouped through fees and other charges. Under the new administrative budget system, operating costs will be reduced still further, in real terms, over the next two years.
Bearing in mind the huge sums involved, I was glad that experts from the London Institute of Fiscal Studies were able to report earlier this year that our system of local authority funding is close to the average in international comparison and that our mix of grants is not out of the mainstream of comparison, given the mix of functions. In 1991, local authorities will incur expenditure of over £1,300 million pounds, and some 54 per cent of this will be met by State grants.
It is important that this large amount of scarce financial resources is spent in the most economic and efficient manner. Because of Government action over the past few years, I believe local authorities are now generally achieving better value for money for the expenditure incurred. However, because of the necessity to limit the financial demands on the public, at both the national and local levels, and to continue the drive to restore the public finances to a situation of lasting balance, local authorities will have to intensify their efforts in the future to ensure that they get the maximum benefit for all expenditure. They will have to consider new ways of providing local services and measures to deal with waste, inefficiency, or out-of-date systems and procedures, where these are still present.
The Government are committed to a fundamental reform of all aspects of our system of local government. We want to make it more effective, more in tune with the needs of local communities, more relevant and responsive and more cost effective. The first step in the ongoing programme of reform was the Local Government Act, 1991. I have made orders under which most provisions of that Act have by now been brought into operation and I intend that the few remaining sections will be brought into operation in the near future.
The provisions of the Act will assist local authorities in making choices, including choices about where to incur expenditure. So as to add still further to local discretion, I am examining the various existing statutory controls on local authorities to see how many can be removed, leaving local authorities free to make — and to answer for — their own decisions.
The 1991 Act sets out the right of local authorities to take all necessary action in support of their existing functions and to carry out other functions which can advantageously be performed in conjunction with them. In addition, it removes the restrictions of the ultra vires rule, for once and for all, leaving local authorities free to take on new challenges. I can say, therefore, that our reform programme is well on course and that the 1991 Local Government Act provides a sound base on which to build. The reform of local government will not stop there, nor will it be forgotten about as happened so often in the past. We are proceeding in stages in an ordered and planned manner. The 1991 Act is a flexible and dynamic instrument and a series of orders and regulations arising from it will bring further changes in the months ahead. In addition, further elements of the system are under review arising from which additional legislation and other measures will be brought forward.
On the local finance side, further developments are also in prospect. Financial reform is, of course, an integral part of the programme for local government reform and I have been taking measures in this respect over the last four years. In the current year, the Estimate includes nearly £169 million for the rate support grant, an increase of 3 per cent in line with inflation levels. Local authorities have welcomed this increase which follows a similar increase last year. The increased grant will enable the authorities to maintain the wide range of essential services they deliver to the public provided, of course, they continue to exercise strict financial management of spending levels in all spheres of activity. The authorities generally are to be complimented for their responsible attitude over the past few years in keeping spending levels within the resources available. I am looking to the new councils to maintain this approach at Estimates time and throughout the year.
I have arranged for the Institute of Fiscal Studies to examine options for the distribution of the rate support grant with a view to achieving greater equalisation among local authorities. The study should be completed later this year and I look forward with interest to its recommendations. It will, I hope, enable us to find the fairest possible way of sharing out the funds available, taking account of local needs and local resources.
The Programme for Economic and Social Progress forecasts that activity in the construction sector in the period up to 1993 will parallel general economic progress. While the programme expects overall construction output to continue to grow, most commentators expect that this will be at a more moderate rate than previously. The principal vehicle for growth will continue to be the private sector but the high levels of public investment in the industry will also play a major part.
Although it is not now subject to the wide variations of earlier years, construction activity continues to be cyclical in its nature. Due to a number of factors, not least of which were bad building weather at the beginning of the year, the Gulf crisis, interest rate patterns and a certain degree of oversupply, it is likely there will be a levelling off of activity this year. This might be expected when regard is had to the record achievements of the last two years. The prospects will be dealt with in more detail in my Department's assessment of activity in the industry which I hope to publish shortly.
In spite of the difficult budgetary position, the Government increased the provisions in the Public Capital Programme affecting the construction industry by over 8 per cent this year compared to the 1990 outturn. The principal sectors where increases occur are industry, up 6 per cent; tourism, up 55 per cent; energy, up 61 per cent; transport, up 18 per cent, roads and sanitary services, up nearly 6 per cent, and housing, up 15 per cent. Of course, everybody would have liked to see larger increases in some sectors but I believe that the overall thrust of the Government's strategy is the correct one and augurs well for a continuing and sustainable high level of output in the industry, consistent with the aims of the Programme for Economic and Social Progress.
The main thrust of Government transport policy is set out in the operational programme agreed between the Government and the EC Commission last year. This is a fully integrated programme of investment in roads and other transport infrastructure, prepared by my Department working closely with the Department of Tourism, Transport and Communications and the Department of the Marine. It involves a total investment in roads, rail, ports and airports of £818 million in the five years 1989 to 1993, of which £516 million is being provided in EC grants. The 1991 Estimates provide £234 million for State road grants. This is the highest provision ever made by any Government and is £18 million more than the 1990 outturn.
Twenty-nine major improvement projects are scheduled for completion and 28 more are to start during the period of the operational programme. At the start of 1991, 17 major road projects were already in progress, with a total estimated cost of £300 million. A further eight major projects are due to start this year, with a total estimated cost of £193 million.
To further underline the Government's commitment to the national road network, I recently presented the Roads Bill, 1991, to this House and I hope that it will be enacted in the next session. This is the most comprehensive roads legislation in the history of the State. It is designed to establish the National Roads Authority on a statutory footing, and to update, strengthen and modernise the law on public roads.
Under the Bill, the National Roads Authority will have overall responsibility for planning and supervising the construction, improvement and maintenance of the network of national roads, including the access routes to the principal ports and airports. National roads represent under 6 per cent of total road mileage, but account for about 37 per cent of total road traffic, two-thirds of it work-related. The assignment of overall responsibility for these roads to a strong and singleminded authority, well equipped to get on with the work of developing the network in partnership with the local authorities, should bring major benefits. Future generations will, I believe, look back on this Bill as a watershed in the improvement of our national roads.
In 1989, the Government made a commitment that £150 million would be provided over three years in discretionary grants to county councils for maintenance and improvement work on the county and regional roads. This has been more than fulfilled: in fact, total grants over the three years will amount to over £182 million. I would add that the provision of £68 million for this purpose in 1991 represents almost a threefold increase on the 1986 provision of £23 million.
The conditions governing expenditure of these grants were changed at my direction in 1989 to give more discretion to county councils and to allow more funds to be spent on surface restoration.
Overall expenditure in 1991 on county and regional roads, financed from my Department and local authorities' own resources, will amount to £120 million, roughly £2,400 for every mile of these roads. I am looking to the local authorities — the recently elected councillors, as well as their managers and engineers — to see to it that this huge sum of money is used to best effect bringing measurable and commensurate returns.
Before leaving the roads area, I would like to refer briefly to driver testing. The delays and difficulties in this area have had only one source — a huge drop in the number of testers. I have now rectified this. As well as bringing the driver testing corps up to full strength, I have also engaged 19 additional testers on a short term contract basis. There are now almost twice as many testers as last year and I am confident that the driving test backlog will be eliminated by the end of the year. The numbers on the waiting list peaked at over 68,000 last November. The total in mid-June, was nearly 20,000 fewer, at 48,600. Of these, more than 14,000 had been given test appointments for the five weeks ending on 20 July and another 10,500 had earlier been offered tests but had either cancelled or indicated that they did not want an early test. The effective waiting list was, therefore, down to 24,000 at mid-June and waiting times at centres around the country are coming down too.
We are proud of our environment in this country. Our countryside is largely unspoilt and our lakes and rivers do not suffer from serious levels of pollution; but there is still a need to give more and more attention to environmental protection, to improve our systems and organisation arrangements and to devote significant financial resources to the effort. Standards are constantly rising and so too are public expectations in this area.
The past year has seen a number of major developments in environment policy. On the legislative front, we have had the enactment of improved water pollution legislation, the publication and processing through the Seanad of the Environmental Protection Agency Bill and the initiation of work in the Department on a comprehensive new Waste Bill. At the operational level there has been the historic achievement of successfully eliminating Dublin smog. At the level of environmental awareness and information we have had the highly acclaimed operation of ENFO, the Environmental Information Service, and a steady output of environmental publications and information from the Department and the Environmental Research Unit.
As Minister for the Environment, I will continue to strive towards full implementation of the Government's Environment Action Programme, published in January 1990. This is the blueprint for activity for the rest of this century and we have made a good start in the last 18 months in getting the programme under way. I hope to publish a report next week showing what progress has been made under the individual headings and what work is being undertaken.
The Environment Action Programme gives particular attention to the quality of drinking water and the disposal of sewage and other water-borne wastes, bearing in mind the relevant EC quality standards and the heightened awareness of people generally about the need for improvements in these areas. In particular, the action programme anticipated the requirements of the Urban Waste Water Directive adopted recently by the EC Council of Environment Ministers. Priority coastal locations have already been identified and planning for the implementation of the necessary sewage treatment schemes has commenced.
The 1991 capital provision for water and sewerage schemes has been increased by 4 per cent to £72.5 million, compared with last year's outturn. The provision will allow for expansion of the programme and enable the planning of schemes to develop in an orderly manner.
Under the Operational Programme for Water, Sanitary and Other Local Services, 1989-93, the European Community has agreed to co-finance, on a 50-50 basis, water and sewerage schemes costing £184 million. The European Community has thus recognised the role of water supply and sewerage infrastructure in fostering economic investment. EC aid for sanitary services schemes is already available under FEOGA and will also be forthcoming now under the ENVIREG and INTERREG initiatives.
The most striking environmental achievement on the ground during the past year was the elimination of Dublin smog. The Government decided early last year that a radical new strategy was required to resolve this previously intractable problem, that strategy needed to be comprehensive and to work quickly.
The central element in our strategy to eliminate Dublin smog was the ban on the marketing of bituminous coal in the Dublin area. Other supporting measures were also important: a substantial increase in heating allowances for low income families; an extensive publicity and information campaign; active promotion of gas conversions; and the specification that all new housing in Dublin conforms to smokeless requirements.
In the seven years prior to 1990-91 air quality standards for smoke were exceeded on average in Dublin more than ten times a year. In 1990-91 no breaches of these standards were recorded. A comparison of monthly smoke levels recorded by the Dublin local authorities indicates that smoke levels between October and February last declined by 54 per cent on average when compared with 1989-90 results for a similar period. The effective reduction was even more marked during the critical winter months of November and December when the recorded levels decreased by over 70 per cent in comparison to 1989 levels.
The clear success of the ban reflects in particular the widespread support of the public as well as the co-operation of the trade generally and the enforcement efforts of the local authorities in policing the ban. Active public support will continue to be an essential ingredient in ensuring that the good air quality achieved this winter is preserved for the future. The benefits of clean air in Dublin in terms of better health and a better environment for its citizens, together with an improved image for the city, are very real and are clearly valued by the people of Dublin.
We are aware that additional costs could arise for households in using the alternative fuels and almost £6 million was provided during the heating season to minimise the additional costs for lowincome households. About 74,000 households in Dublin qualified for this special allowance which was payable by the Department of Social Welfare. When added to the normal fuel allowance, in all more than one in four households in Dublin received an allowance of £8 per week in total over a 26 week period to help with fuel costs.
The continued success of the Dublin coal ban will require the same effort and co-operation from all concerned — the public, the fuel trade and the Dublin local authorities — as was evidenced last winter. I am confident that this will be forthcoming and that the progress already achieved in improving air quality will be maintained in the future.
The Local Government (Water Pollution) (Amendment Act, 1990, which came into force last year, has considerably strengthened the powers available to local authorities to prevent and deal with water pollution. The new Act specifically reinforces the polluter pays principle which is a fundamental plank of Irish pollution control policy. The Act expressly provides that a convicted polluter be made liable to pay the costs incurred by the prosecuting authority in bringing the prosecution, a provision allowing any person to seek a court order requiring remedial measures to be taken — for example, to replace fish stocks — and a statutory provision making polluters civilly liable for the damage caused by the pollution in certain cases. Similar measures are now being incorporated in the Environmental Protection Agency Bill as regards liability for damage resulting from air pollution legislation.
Since the very high number of fish kills in the summer of 1987, when 122 fish kills were reported, an ongoing programme, of which the amending legislation was only one aspect, has been in place to eliminate such incidents. An indication of the success of these measures has been the reduction in the number of kills caused by agricultural pollution since 1987. In that year 95 of the 122 kills were caused by agriculture. During the years 1988 to 1990 the incidents attributable to this source ranged from 23 to 26 kills. Figures for 1991 to date indicate that so far this year less than one-third of the kills were the result of farming activities — six out of a provisional figure of 20. Even more encouraging is the fact that the number of fish kills to the end of June this year is the lowest since 1983. In addition, the eight fish kills in June, the month which traditionally has had the highest number of kills, is also the lowest figure since 1983.
A recent report from the European Commission on bathing water quality in the Community shows Ireland at top of the league with full compliance with standards at 96 per cent of our listed beaches. The number of Irish beaches which have achieved Blue Flag standards has increased from 48 in 1990 to 66 in 1991. This corroborates the generally satisfactory situation of Irish beaches and bathing waters.
Our continuing concern is to ensure that control measures are taken where necessary so that the progress being made in protecting the quality of our waters is maintained.
The increase in the quantities and types of waste generated in recent years has given rise to many new control and disposal problems. We need new comprehensive waste legislation to ensure that these problems are regulated in a well ordered manner. The patchwork of Public Health and Sanitary Services Acts that has survived from the last century is now completely anachronistic and we need a far wider control dimension than is possible under the series of Regulations made under the European Communities Act. I regard the preparation of a new code of waste legislation as an important priority and work on this is already under way in my Department.
An important aspect of waste management is the extent to which we can recover waste materials for profitable reuse. We are not as advanced in recycling as some of the mainland European countries, and many elements of consumer waste which are readily recovered for reprocessing in other countries are left to litter our countryside. Progress is however being made. Within the last three years the national percentage of recycled glass has risen from 6 per cent to 14 per cent while metal-can recovery levels have moved from zero to 10 per cent in the same period. The increase in recovery levels for waste paper and plastics, while less spectacular, is also notable. Growing environmental consciousness has of course played a part in the improving situation. This could not have happened, however, without a basic recovery infrastructure. The scheme of recycling grants introduced some years ago has already assisted in the setting up of 20 recycling projects.
The Environmental Protection Agency forms a major part of the Government's plans for protecting the environmental resources of the country. The Environmental Protection Agency Bill has had an extensive debate in the Seanad and has now passed all Stages there. We intend to have the Bill before this House early in the next session and hope it will be enacted before Christmas so that the agency can be up and running next year.
The agency's functions will involve four main areas — licensing of those activities with potential for major pollution, monitoring of environmental quality, providing advice and assistance to public authorities, and promoting and co-ordinating environmental research and sound environmental practices.
The agency will supplement and complement the role of local authorities and will ensure that national environmental protection action is coherent and consistent. Local authorities will continue to play a major role in relation to environmental protection. Good relations between the agency and local authorities, based on mutual trust and co-operation, will be a vital part of the new arrangements.
Along with the wide range of initiatives the Government are taking to protect the environment through the environment action programme, we are also determined to increase the level of environmental awareness among the public generally. The resources allocated for this purpose in the 1991 Estimates will be used to encourage and support voluntary, community and other committed groups and individuals through award schemes and grants administered by my Department. Special promotional campaigns will also be developed in respect of particular environmental issues which need to be highlighted. As one example, my Department will be launching a multimedia anti-litter campaign very shortly.
While the vastly increased availability of environmental information in recent years is very welcome, there are some dangers of information overload and confusion among the general public as to what exactly the problems are and what the role of the individual is in solving them. Given this situation and the need for active involvement of the public in the cause of the environment, there was a case for an easily accessible source of wide-ranging and authoritative information on the environment.
ENFO — the Environment Information Service, was established in September 1990 and a sum of £600,000 has been allocated for 1991. The main services provided by ENFO are the operation of a public drop-in information centre and reference library at 17 St. Andrew Street, Dublin, a postal and telephone query service and the production of a series of information leaflets on environmental topics. As an indication of the popularity of this service, ENFO has averaged well over 1,000 visitors per week since it opened. ENFO has also a countrywide network for the distribution of leaflets and it is developing access facilities to its computerised information in all major public libraries around the country. I believe ENFO will make a substantial contribution to the creation of a broader and fuller understanding of environmental issues.
Since I launched it last February, the plan for social housing has been widely acknowledged as the most comprehensive and imaginative response to social housing needs this country has seen. The plan greatly increases the choice available to low income families and households in regard to their housing accommodation and improves their prospects of becoming house owners. The new measures will also ensure that the local authority and voluntary housing sectors can work together to provide a modern and effective social housing system and one which meets the needs of those unable to provide adequate accommodation from their own resources.
We can all be proud of the fact that we have over 80 per cent home ownership in this country at present. I am particularly proud of the part I played in extending home ownership to over 30,000 local authority tenants through the 1988 tenant purchase scheme. But there are still households, especially younger persons, who are not able to realise the ambition of owning their own homes. Many of the new measures which I announced are specifically targeted towards this group. I believe that, taken together, the shared ownership system, the mortgage allowance for tenants and the provision of sites by local authorities represent the broadest and most positive initiative ever in this country to assist marginal house purchasers. The public response to these schemes suggests that they will be highly successful and will be of major significance in meeting housing needs in the future. The Estimates include provisions for the commencement of these schemes this year.
The range of new measures in the plan complements the local authority housing programme which itself is an integral element in the plan. The total funds available this year for the programme come to £69 million — an increase of over 35 per cent on last year's expenditure of £51 million. Of this sum, nearly £46 million is being devoted to the provision of local authority housing, an increase of about 35 per cent on last year's capital expenditure of £34 million, and over double the expenditure in 1989. The increased 1991 allocation will enable a significantly expanded programme to be undertaken this year. This should yield about 1,300 completions and about 1,500 new starts.
The availability of local authority accommodation is not, of course, solely determined by the number of new units of accommodation provided. Taking account of casual vacancies, it is estimated that 5,000 new lettings of local authority dwellings will be made this year.
Under the plan for social housing, I introduced a new scheme, whereby local authorities may repair or extend the existing accommodation of an applicant for housing as an alternative to rehousing by the local authority. This can be a very cost effective way of meeting housing need and can have the significant social advantage of ensuring that applicants for housing remain in their own neighbourhoods and communities. I have provided £2 million for this scheme in 1991.
The voluntary housing sector has been playing an increasingly important role in meeting social housing needs in recent years. I anticipate that this sector will provide about 550 additional units of accommodation in 1991. I would like to acknowledge the excellent work which the voluntary sector has done in meeting the housing needs of some of the least well off in our society. The sector has the experience, the ability and the willingness to be major providers of social housing in future years and I intend to assist and encourage the organisations involved to the fullest extent possible. In this respect I am pleased that I was able to increase the capital provision under the voluntary housing scheme to £11.5 million in 1991, an increase of £2 million over the expenditure allowed in 1990.
In order to further develop the role of the voluntary sector in meeting social housing needs the plan for social housing provides for a new rental subsidy scheme covering family type accommodation. I am confident that this scheme will provide the opportunity for the voluntary housing movement to become significant players in meeting the full range of modern housing needs. Under this new scheme a voluntary body may borrow the full capital cost of a project. The loan charges incurred, together with a contribution towards maintenance and management, will be financed from the rents received, together with a subsidy paid by the local authority and recouped by my Department. I am delighted with the response from the voluntary housing sector to this new scheme to date and I was particularly pleased to be able to launch the first rental subsidy scheme in Waterford on 30 May of this year.
The overall provision of £69 million for the local authority housing programme includes £16 million in respect of remedial works this year compared to only £1.6 million in 1986. To date some £63 million has been made available to local authorities for necessary remedial works to their older and substandard housing under this scheme. This year's allocation will provide for works to some 75 local authority estates throughout the country.
I was also pleased to include in the plan for social housing a special subprogramme to assist local authorities to provide bathrooms in their housing stock which still lacks this facility. I have allocated £2 million in 1991 to fund this subprogramme, which is intended to complement local authorities' own efforts to provide these basic facilities.
Last year I provided £600,000 for recoupment to local authorities in respect of expenditure they incurred in securing accommodation for homeless persons under section 10 of the Housing Act, 1988. There was a substantial saving on this subhead which led me to believe that not all local authorities were fully utilising the powers available to them to improve the housing conditions of homeless persons in their areas.
During 1990 I initiated a review of the effectiveness of the measures introduced under the 1988 Act in relation to the accommodation of homeless persons. Housing authorities, the voluntary organisations working with the homeless and the Department of Health were consulted in the review, which concluded that the basic legislation and guidelines were satisfactory where they were implemented in a flexible and sympathetic manner by local authorities. There was, however, justified concern regarding the implementation of the guidelines by some local authorities. I have, therefore, strengthened and revised the guidelines in a number of key areas and simplified the arrangements under which local authorities can give financial assistance to voluntary organisations providing accommodation for homeless persons. These revised guidelines were issued to local authorities on 3 May last. I am confident that the effective implementation of those new guidelines will greatly improve access to decent accommodation for homeless persons. I have again provided £600,000 for recoupment to local authorities in this area in 1991 and I am hopeful that the provision will be fully utilised.
I am pleased to say that the National Safety Council, which I set up in 1988, have been successful in consolidating the work of the three bodies which they replaced and are effectively and efficiently carrying out the tasks assigned to them. I have allocated a further grant of £550,000 to the council for 1991. I want to express my appreciation to the Irish Insurance Federation for their contribution of £480,000 to the council this year, including a special grant of £250,000 to provide support for a major road safety campaign which I launched last September and which has been singularly successful so far. The council have a lead role in this campaign and have drawn up a public awareness action plan involving extensive media advertising in areas such as drink/driving and the use of seat belts; promotional work on TV, national and local radio, magazines, videos, leaflets and involvement in conferences.
Figures for 1990 show that 478 people died in road accidents, an increase of 18 over 1989. However, there has been a considerable drop in road deaths since the launch of the road safety campaign last September. Preliminary road accident figures up to the end of May 1991 show a drop from 193 to 153 in the numbers killed compared with the same period in 1990. While it is still too early to draw any firm conclusions, this reduction is very encouraging indeed. Attitudes towards drink-driving and speeding are hopefully changing for the better and legislation which I hope to bring before the House in the next session will reinforce this.
Before concluding, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle, I would like to take this opportunity, as the busy holiday period commences, to ask the public to take extra care on all our roads, in the water or in areas where there is a fire risk. People should abide by the advice that is widely available and in particular from the National Safety Council. We all want to avoid tragic accidents and I appeal, therefore, to people to exercise great caution. Compliance with a few basic rules would avoid tragedies and make the holiday season more enjoyable for all.
Cé go gcaithfimid smacht a choinneáil ar chaiteachas an Stáit, táim sásta go bhfuil dóthain airgid ar fáil chun seirbhísí na Roinne a riaradh go cuí agus a fhorbairt i mbliana. Mar sin, molaim an Measteachán Comhshaoil don Teach.
I welcome this opportunity to debate the Estimates for the Department of the Environment. The services provided by the Department are necessary for our daily lives, whether it be water supply, sewerage, roads, housing, fire services and many more services. Most of these services are provided by local authorities in a quiet and efficient manner. The staff and elected members of the authorities deserve our support and thanks.
The Government have taken action to implement reforms in the local government area. It is the first real reform that has taken place for decades. This reform is being implemented and additional measures will be put in place in the near future.
I would like to say a few words about the construction industry. Construction activity began to recover in 1988 and in 1989, and in 1990 the industry enjoyed a period of growth in contrast to its decline in fortunes for much of the earlier part of the last decade. In the past two years output in the industry increased by about 20 per cent and employment by about 15 per cent. The period of decline prior to 1988 reflected the poor performance of the economy then, with unsustainable levels of public investment at a time of downturn in private investment. The improvement in the construction industry followed from Government action to restore confidence in the economy. The work of the industry can be clearly seen all around the country in major road improvements, more water and sewerage schemes and urban renewal projects. While there will inevitably be a levelling off of activity this year, there should continue to be a growth in output in the years to come.
I would like to deal with urban renewal. The Government's drive to promote urban renewal in cities and towns throughout the country has been particularly successful in recent years. Contributing to this success has been the Government's economic policy which has created a climate for increased private sector investment. Along with the new optimism the designated areas scheme for urban renewal, which is being vigorously promoted by the Government, has resulted in a substantial increase in private sector development in parts of our urban areas which had for years lain dormant. To date private sector projects involving investment of over £600 million have been generated or planned. They will give rise to over 10,000 construction jobs, as well as a large number of long-term jobs. All of this investment is in addition to the Custom House Docks project, valued at some £400 million, where work is progressing rapidly.
In order to upgrade the general environment in designated areas, a new scheme of urban renewal grants was introduced in 1989 to finance works by local authorities which complement and encourage private sector investment in these areas. Over the last two years a total of £4.5 million has been provided in urban renewal grants. A further £1 million is being provided this year in the Estimates under discussion. This has been supplemented by additional contributions from local authorities and the private sector.
In this year's Finance Act the Government introduced new measures which will improve the urban renewal programme. Firstly, we are improving the tax relief regime for developments carried out under section 23 arrangements as well as extending the time period for section 23 tax relief to 31 May 1993 in the designated areas.
Secondly, we are making special arrangements to promote development in the Temple Bar area by applying a generous package of tax incentives to promote new and especially refurbishment works in the area. Urban renewal is a joint effort between the State, local authorities and the private sector. With the combined efforts of all concerned, we are succeeding in eradicating the decay and dereliction, which has blighted many of our towns and cities. I am glad that the urban renewal programme has been very successful. Great thanks and credit must go to all local authorities throughout the country who have been involved in the designated areas and for the manner in which they have promoted the various programmes. We deeply appreciate that. As Minister with responsibility for urban renewal, I convey my thanks to all local authorities throughout the country for their great efforts in this regard and for their liaison with all interested parties.
I am glad that the Estimates include provisions for the start of the various elements of the social housing programme. These schemes include the shared ownership scheme, mortgage allowance for tenants, provision of bathrooms in local authority houses lacking these facilities, provision of sites by local authorities and increased funding for voluntary housing projects. These measures are in addition to the normal local authority house building programme. The programme will be expanded this year. The overall provision for local authority and social housing is over £80 million compared with about £60 million last year. This is an increase of nearly £20 million or 33 per cent. This is a large increase, especially at a time of scarce financial resources.
The Government are also continuing the remedial works programme with £16 million this year. This will allow for work on 75 housing schemes throughout the country. I was particularly happy to see the Government providing funds for the installation of bathrooms or showers in local authority houses without them. This is a very worth-while move by the Government which will encourage local authorities to make some resources of their own available in order to ensure over the coming years that every local authority dwelling has a bathroom.
The Estimates make provision for the payment of various house grants and subsidies. Some of these schemes were abolished in 1987 but the Government are still providing funds to meet commitments arising under them. The major grant scheme in operation is the new house grant scheme, and £7½ million is provided to meet grant payments arising this year. The Estimate also includes £1 million for house improvement grants, £290,000 for renewal or repair of thatched roofs and £2.6 million for grants for disabled persons and essential repair grants to houses in rural areas for the elderly. The combined total of all these grants is £11,390,000. The Estimate also includes £5 million for the old mortgage subsidy scheme. Last year over 24,000 payments were made under this scheme, which was ended in 1986.
In regard to our roads improvement programme, I was very pleased with the substantial amount allocated to the county road network. This was very welcome and was much appreciated by local authorities throughout the country. The Minister for the Environment made these grants available and gave them in a discretionary manner. It was open to the local authority members and officials to decide how the money should be spent and they got great value for the money. I was very pleased, coming from the midlands, to see how the money was spent. The roads in the area are now in a very good condition. Many people may say that much money is needed, especially for the county road network, and there is no doubt that is true; but, taking into account the resources of the local authorities together with the amount made available by the Department, a total of £120 million was spent on the county road network. That is the highest sum spent in this area in the history of the State and it is very much appreciated.
I want to go back to urban renewal. I am extremely pleased at the manner in which the works are being carried out throughout the country. We have seen major development taking place throughout the country, in Cork, Limerick, Mayo and including Castlebar, Tullamore, Letterkenny, Ennis and Dundalk. I appreciate the co-operation of the local authorities, private developers and the financial institutions. We owe them a deep debt of gratitude for the success we have achieved. We have to depend on private enterprise to give the lead and I thank them for the part they have played. The provision of tax incentives depends on private enterprise, initiatives and so on. Since coming to office we have restored confidence in the economy. I have no doubt that has been appreciated because we have created thousands of jobs under the urban renewal programme. It is all about creating the climate and restoring confidence in the economy. The people fully realise that now.
In the run-up to the local elections I said that in my Department — irrespective of who was Minister or what Government was in office — there was never enough money to take on all the projects. We have taken on a vast number of projects such as water, sewerage, group water schemes, national road networks, the major road works throughout the country. We have to work according to the finances available to us and that is how we will operate. There is no point in anyone saying we want more housing — of course we do — and further development, but we must have the money available to us to do it. We have to live according to the Estimate given to us in the budget.
Overall in the last four years in the Department of the Environment with the resources available to us and the back-up from the local authorities we have done an enormous amount of work on pollution, the provision of water services, sewerage, sanitation, fire services and so on. Great credit must go to the Minister for the Environment, Deputy Flynn, who is here with me this evening. Within the limits of the resources and the finances available we are trying to divide the cake to the best of our ability. We would like to do more but the money is not available and it can only come from the people. With our ability to lead from here on in we shall give the best service we can to the people at the Department of the Environment.
With only four minutes to go I thought my good friend, the Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Deputy Connolly, would continue to complete today's proceedings.
I am afraid we have to comply with the time order.
I would be good for another half hour; I was only warming up.
This afternoon we completed a day-long debate on the problems of the agricultural industry. Tonight I will attempt to focus in on the problems relating to the tourism industry which is second to agriculture in its financial returns to this country. It is now widely recognised that for 1991 there are serious problems confronting the industry, especially in the accommodation sector. This can be related to a dramatic fall in the volume of American tourists coming to Ireland, a reduction of 30 per cent on the 1990 figures to date over the first six months. It is also reliably estimated that a 25 per cent drop in American tourism cost this country £67 million. With the excess to date of over 25 per cent it must be accepted therefore, that the loss to the Irish economy is many millions of pounds more than £67 million at a time when we can ill-afford to lose such earnings.
An indication of the seriousness of the situation at the peak of the 1991 tourist season is that hotels are putting staff on short time. The unemployment figures for June clearly indicate that the normal annual take-up in the hotel and restaurant industry for this month has not materialised; had that happened there would be a substantial reduction on the unemployment figures.
In the Irish Independent of 5 July, the tourism correspondent set the record straight when he said:
Hoteliers were last night banking on a long, warm spell to ease the summer problems brought on by a serious slump in American and British tourist business.
Hundreds of hotel bedrooms are empty and the big hope now is the Irish will opt to holiday at home in even greater numbers.
So far the "summer" has conspired with the foreign recession and the Gulf War to make life difficult for an industry which has enjoyed three boom years.
That article, with a leading article on the same date entitled "Empty Bedrooms", fully demonstrates the serious aspect of the industry currently. While undoubtedly the general idea is that the difficulties of the American tourist were created by the Gulf War, that is too simplistic an answer to explain the situation. While the Gulf War may have been responsible for a reduction in the number of American tourists travelling to Ireland in 1991 it certainly would not be responsible for a reduction of 30 per cent. This is a matter that requires immediate and urgent investigation by the Minister, Bord Fáilte and the industry. I contend that the present slump in the American trade is deeper and has more serious consequences. I contend that the volume of State spending on marketing in America is not adequate. In 1990 the industry put up £56 million for the general marketing and promotional programme and against that the State put up £18 million.
Debate adjourned.