Billy Timmins
Question:98 Mr. Timmins asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the number of local authority houses built in the period 1995 to 1999; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24707/00]
Written Answers. - Local Authority Housing.
The number of houses completed or acquired by local authorities for each of the years 1995 to 1999 was as follows: 1995, 3,687 units; 1996, 3,504 units; 1997, 3,203 units; 1998, 3,290; and 1999, 3,713 units. By the end of the year I expect local authorities will have some 6,000 units either under construction or being acquired – by far the highest level of activity under the local authority housing programme for many years.
In response to the increased level of housing need, I have taken a range of measures to assist local authorities to expand their housing programmes and to expand overall social housing output. This has included the introduction of a four year multi-annual local authority housing programme for the period 2000 to 2003. I have also considerably expanded the voluntary housing programme. In addition, as part of its Action on Housing, the Government increased the local authority housing programme by an extra 1,000 units in each year from 2001 to 2006. I propose to notify local authorities shortly of the allocation of 3,000 of these extra units for the period covering the multi-annual programme up to 2003. The four year multi-annual programme will, therefore, increase from 22,000 to 25,000 housing units. I have also encouraged local authorities to front load their programmes as much as possible to meet the increased level of need. In effect this allows local authorities to commence as many local authority housing projects as they can at the earliest possible time.