Vol. 482 No. 8
207 Mr. McGrath asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the regulations or guidelines, if any, imposed by his Department on local authorities in relation to the spending of moneys collected by that authority as rent and annuities; the changes, if any, there have been in those regulations over the past ten years; if so, if he will give details of those changes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19689/97]
Housing rents are credited to the current revenue account of the housing authority concerned and there has been no charge in this arrangement in the last ten years.
The use of housing capital receipts, including annuities, is subject to approval by the Minister in accordance with section 108 of the Housing Act, 1966, as substituted by section 22 of the Housing Act, 1988. Local authorities are required to credit a proportion of receipts from pre-1993 tenant purchase schemes to capital purposes. In the absence of alternative arrangements specifically approved on an individual authority basis, this proportion was 60 per cent in the financial years 1981 to 1996 and 80 per cent with effect from 1 January, 1997. Local authorities are required to credit the full proceeds of sales under the 1993 and 1995 tenant purchase schemes to capital purposes. These arrangements have been in place since the introduction of the schemes on 6 July 1993 and 1 May, 1995, respectively.
Since 1990, the social housing programmes of local authorities including the provision of houses, remedial works etc, have been funded by way of a combination of Exchequer grants and internal capital receipts. Prior to 1990, housing capital receipts were normally used to finance the making of house purchase and improvement loans and other capital purposes as approved by the Minister.
