Michael Ring
Question:511 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Education and Science when a school (details supplied) in County Mayo applied for grant aid to carry out renovations. [27701/01]
Written Answers. - Schools Building Projects.
Michael Ring
Question:514 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Education and Science the stage at which an application by a school (details supplied) in County Mayo for funding to carry out renovations has reached; and when the school will proceed to the next stage. [27706/01]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 511 and 514 together.
My Department received an application for grant aid towards the cost of a building project at the school in question in April 2000.
Since then the planning and building unit of my Department has assessed the long-term accommodation requirements of the school and a technical assessment of the existing school building has also been carried out.
The Deputy will appreciate that there has been a massive and unprecedented increase in the funds allocated by this Government to the building programme at all levels. The allocation in the current year is £370.5 million or 470.4 million. This is almost four times the allocation made by the previous Government in 1997. This level of funding has enabled my Department to undertake a record number of building projects, and it is my intention to continue this rate of progress in overcoming the deficit arising from many past years and in meeting the needs of the present day.
Decisions relating to the rate of progress to construction of individual projects, including a proposed project at the school referred to by the Deputy, will be taken as in previous years in the light of the allocations to be made for school building purposes in the forthcoming Estimates.