Thursday, 11 Dec 2014

Written Answers Nos. 186-192

Local Development Companies Funding

Questions (186)

Pearse Doherty

Question:

186. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he will provide a list detailing all funding payments made by Donegal Local Development Company Limited to individual local community and voluntary groups since 2000, including the name of each group and or company which was in receipt of these payments; the amount of funding paid out with respect to each one; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47569/14]

Written answers

Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government

Since 2000, funding has been provided to Donegal Local Development Company (LDC) through a number of funding programmes, including the Local and Community Development Programme (LCDP), LEADER+, the National Rural Development Programme 2000-2006, the Rural Development Programme 2007-2013 and the Dormant Accounts Fund, which are currently under the remit of my Department.

My Department’s LCDP superseded the Local Development Social Inclusion and the Community Development Programmes in 2010. LCDP is the largest social inclusion intervention of its kind in the State. The current Programme officially ended at the end of 2013 having operated for four years. It is currently being implemented on a transitional basis pending the introduction of a new Programme, the Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP), in April 2015. Pobal manage the LCDP on behalf of my Department and currently provide funding to Donegal LDC to implement the LCDP. In 2014 €1,301,117 of LCDP funding was provided to Donegal LDC.

Details of funding paid by Donegal LDC to individual local community and voluntary groups under the LCDP, and previous programmes, have been held in a number of formats and systems, which are not readily available and would involve a disproportionate amount of time and work to compile.

Donegal LDC also received funding from my Department under the Dormant Accounts Fund of €27,000 in 2007 and €3,000 in 2008. This was under the Recreation and Development funding measure to support disadvantaged young people. The information in relation to this funding is being compiled and will be forwarded to the Deputy as soon as possible.

My Department contracted Donegal LDC in 2009 to deliver the LEADER element of the Rural Development Programme 2007-2013 (RDP) in parts of Donegal. On foot of a legal challenge by another EU Member State, the European Court of Justice prohibited the publication of beneficiary details. Because of this judgement Ireland has only published details of payments to the Local Action Groups that administer the Programme. In January 2014, this issue was resolved and lists of beneficiaries under the RDP, in respect of 2014 EU financial year, will be published in May 2015.

Funding was also provided to Donegal LDC under the LEADER+ and National Rural Development Programme 2000-2006 and a list of the beneficiaries is detailed in the following table.

Name	Amount
LEADER+ Training
Ardara Parents Comm.	€6,681
Ballytour Participants	€17,280
Community Development Course	€9,200
Dunfanaghy Youth Group	€6,000
Donegal Youth Council	€29,694
Tuath	€36,500
Smallholders Working Group (DLDC Ltd)	€5,870
Daybreak	€29,814
Donegal Mountain Rescue Team	€10,630
LEADERship Training (DLDC 03)	€17,471
Organic Training for Future Farmers	€8,892
Donegal Youth Council	€6,871
Smallholders Working Group (DLDC 18)	€1,725
LEADER+ Analysis and Development
Bundoran W.E. Development	€7,500
South Donegal Womans Resource Group	€4,080
L.A.T.C.H Ltd	€1,320
Rural Areas Networking Together	€4,947
Ramelton Comm Action Group Ltd	€4,696
St. Josephs Conference/SVdeP	€4,000
Lough Eske Comm Dev Assoc Ltd	€2,400
Milford & District Resource Ltd	€6,000
South Donegal Border Cmte	€6,000
Twin Towns Comm Platform	€10,219
LEADER+ Innovatative rural enterprises, craft enterprises and local services / facilities
Rathmullen Enterprise Group Ltd	€60,000
Erne Social & Business Dev Group	€7,746
Donegal Town Enterprise Scheme	€52,500
Erne Social & Business Dev Group	€6,244
Donegal Youth Service	€7,385
Raphoe Community In Action	€7,071
Erne Social & Business Dev Group	€11,751
Meenreagh & District Company Ltd	€11,940
Erne Enterprise Ltd	€2,640
IRD Milford Ltd.	€29,900
Ramelton Town Hall Dev Co Ltd	€65,000
Drimarone Devel. Ltd	€45,000
Convoy Enterprise Centre	€48,810
St.Johnston & Carrigans Family Resource Centre	€1,822
Castlefinn Partnership	€65,000
Killygordon Amenity Team Enterprise (KATE)	€12,000
Lifford Athletic Club	€30,000
Erne Enterprise Dev Co Ltd	€5,964
LEADER+ Exploitation of agriculture, forestry and fisheries products
Dunfanaghy Angling Ass	€4,081
LEADER+ Enhancement of natural / built / social / cultural environment
Glen Community Dev.	€12,357
Ramelton Community Action Group Ltd	€12,088
Coolmore Community Group	€16,575
Gartan Dev.Association	€10,500
Ramelton Community Action Group Ltd	€2,380
The Workhouse	€11,740
Glenties Tidy Town Cmte Ltd	€5,000
The Workhouse	€1,044
GAP Dev. Committee	€74,997
Doon Well Conservation Cmte	€39,601
Castlefin Partnership Initiative Ltd	€20,000
Rathmullan Enterprise Group Ltd	€13,485
Crossroads & Killygordon Enterprise Ltd	€17,351
The Workhouse	€8,353
Bluestack Way Committee	€8,122
Inver Community Dev Assoc Ltd	€34,035
Churches Together St. Johnston	€2,900
Lough Eske Community Dev	€2,017
Creeslough Anglers Association	€6,625
Trustees of Leghawny Hall Ltd	€13,673
Cathedral Hall Management Cmte Ltd	€6,467
Holy Trinity Select Vestry	€32,946
Aughnish Road Residence Group	€5,098
SW Donegal Community Partnership Ltd	€6,579
Community Creations Ltd	€2,972
Barnesmore Comm Dev Assoc Ltd	€6,922
Letterkenny Comm Centre	€47,500
St. John Bosco Club	€21,586
Narin & Portnoo Co-op	€6,056
Inver Community Dev Co.	€22,963
Rathmullen & District Resource Centre Ltd	€35,920
Donegal Art Unlimited	€505
Management Committee Glenmore Hall	€20,000
Castlefin Tidy Town Assoc	€20,000
BMD	€35,920
Tirhugh Resource Center	€33,942
Erne Enterprise	€6,312
Glenties Community Centre Amalgamated Ltd	€34,740
Cairde le Cheile Cmte Ltd	€21,260
Inver Community Dev Co-op	€9,143
Colmcille(Columba) Heritage Trust	€6,750
Bluestack Schools Reunion Festival	€2,695
Ballyshannon B&R Band	€7,300
Ardara Parish Council	€5,410
Milford All-Ireland Sheepshearing 2004 Cmte	€10,730
Lough Eske Comm Dev Assoc	€2,655
Donegal Vintage Club	€7,562
Atlantic View Comm Development	€2,890
Coiste Oireachtas Aitiuil Leitir Ceanainn	€5,742
Historic Ballyshannon	€809
Holy Cross Conference SVP	€63,190
Mountcharles ICA	€869
Donegal Town Rural Schools Reunion	€4,030
Ballinakillew N.S.	€985
Fleadh Cheoil na hEireann 2005	€10,710
St Garvan's NS 75th Anniversary Cmte	€3,000
Festival Fun Group	€2,500
Ramelton Community in Action	€10,765
Glenfin Area Council	€7,540
DLDC & 13 participants (Alphabet Parks)	€49,985
CLADDA	€3,203
LEADER+ Environmentally friendly iniatives
Erne Social & Business Dev Group	€12,058
Dunfanaghy Youth Club	€8,190
LEADER+ Transnational and Inter-territorial
Walking in the West (DLDC - 8)	€4,500
Agricultural Secoral Forum	€12,500
Cairdeas na bhFidleiri	€32,000
Trisurf (DLDC 04)	€58,170
County Community Forum	€1,272
Skye Training (DLDC 01)	€8,325
Community Arts & Festivals (DLDC 14)	€15,110
Erne Corridor	€3,000
Erne Social & Business Dev Group	€2,131
Women in Rural Development (DLDC 15)	€10,150
Deep Sea Angling (DLDC 10)	€18,200
NRDP* Rural Tourism
John Coyle	€30,000
Bert Anderson	€30,000
Beatrice & Jim Mc Cauley	€30,000
Eamonn Ferry	€23,025
Kevin Houston	€30,000
Daniel& Dolores Mc Gee	€30,000
Patrick Travers	€30,000
Malachy & Goretti Sweeney	€7,200
Colin & Sian Mc Cann	€14,000
Anne Campbell	€29,510
Martina Mulhern	€17,376

Donegal Self-catering Group	€1,542
Irish Adventure.com Declan Brennan	€12,874
Dietrich Bohnhorst	€5,520
N W Tourism Authority	€20,000
Ltk. B&B Approved Tourist Accom Providers	€1,095
Donegal G.A.P	€10,902
Martina & Patsy O'Sullivan	€6,387
N W Tourism Authority	€19,832
Drimarone Development Assoc Ltd	€4,000
Cashelard Community Dev Assoc Ltd	€4,000
Maeve Costello & Seamus Murphy	€21,975
Martin & Kathleen Loughery	€21,975
Mary & Martin McGranaghan	€20,274
Ann-Marie & Joseph Sweeney	€21,975
Sean Coyle	€21,975
Meenreagh Social Centre & Hostel Ltd	€4,000
NRDP* Agri - Tourism
Garvan G Connolly	€24,486
John & Dolores McCarron	€30,000
Liam Tinney	€30,000
Carmel & Patsy Boyle	€30,000
Golden Sands	€35,982
NRDP* Training
Dunfanaghy Resource	€950
Seamus Mc Fadden	€2,564
Martin Mc Andrew	€750
Tourism Marketing Course	€3,500
Outdoor Activity Centre	€6,792
Town & Country Homes	€1,210
Donegal is the Business	€5,924
TUATH	€19,600
NRDP* Analysis & Development
The Workhouse	€6,200
Kilraine Resource & Tourism Group	€7,500
Rathmullan 21	€5,747
L.A.T.C.H Ltd	€8,000
Abhaile Aris	€3,920
David Kenny	€1,500
NRDP* Innovative Rural Enterprises
Swilly/Mulroy Community Dev Co-op	€4,005
Country Markets	€2,215
Doogan Donegal Ltd	€14,602
Killybegs Maritime & Heritage Centre Ltd	€49,469
NRDP* Enhancement of Natural Environment
L.A.T.C.H. Enhancement	€2,000
Pettigo Sheep Dog Trials	€5,019
Rossnakill Fair	€6,350
Bundoran Ocean Festival	€1,000
Ards Friary	€1,351
Additional 2007 NRDP* Funding
Maritime & Heritage Centre Killybegs Ltd	€8,821
Ards Capuchin Friary	€18,834
AWAKE Tourism Ardara Drama	€10,648
Ionad Pobail agus Spoirt Naomh Mhuire	€61,697
Doneyloop Youth Club	€53,156
* National Rural Development Programme 2000 - 2006

Local Authority Housing Maintenance

Questions (187)

Pearse Doherty

Question:

187. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he will provide a list of all the unoccupied local authority housing in the Stranorlar, County Donegal, electoral area, including the date as and from which each unit was last occupied; if he will provide the estimated costs and timescale involved in bringing each of these unoccupied properties up to an acceptable standard in order to make them habitable; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47570/14]

Written answers

Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government

Under Section 58 of the Housing Act 1966, Donegal County Council, as the housing authority for the Stranorlar electoral area, is responsible for the management and maintenance of the local authority housing stock in the area and my Department does not hold the specific information sought. Statistics on local authority housing stock, including units that may be empty, are published by the Local Government Management Agency ; the most recent data are in respect of 2012 and are available at the following link: http://www.lgma.ie/sites/default/files/service_indicators_2012_report_for_website_0.pdf.

My Department supports local authorities in their work on returning vacant and boarded up social housing units to use, for which €30 million nationally has been allocated in 2014, with a target of returning 1,960 such units to productive use in an energy efficient condition. Donegal County Council has been allocated almost €926,000 under this programme in 2014, targeting 167 vacant units throughout the County, including units in the Stranorlar electoral area, and I expect to see a full delivery of this target.

Local Authority Housing Eligibility

Questions (188)

Joanna Tuffy

Question:

188. Deputy Joanna Tuffy asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he will provide an update on the rules that apply to separated persons applying for social housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47592/14]

Written answers

Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government

Under section 20 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 and Regulation 22(1) of the Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011, a household is ineligible for social housing support if a member owns alternative accommodation, to the household’s current accommodation, that is suitable for the household to live in.

Regulation 22(2) of the 2011 Regulations provides that this ineligibility does not apply where an applicant for social housing support owns accommodation that is occupied by his or her spouse, from whom he or she is separated under a court order or deed of separation. The rationale for this exception is that the terms of a formal separation or divorce will provide for the future ownership and occupation of the family home and it will be clear whether the household that has left the family home can return to live there.

In order to provide more flexibility to housing authorities to deal with cases where the ownership of the family home had not yet been finalised the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2014 amended section 20 of the 2009 Act. Housing authorities may now provide such households with social housing support under the Rental Accommodation Scheme or the new Housing Assistance Payment scheme until ownership of the family home is resolved in a formal separation or divorce settlement.

The 2014 Act amendment provides that support in these circumstances will be reviewed by the housing authority at prescribed intervals and the household will not be able to transfer to other forms of social housing support while ownership of the family home remains to be determined. However, where the household ultimately qualifies for the full range of social housing supports, the length of time the household was supported under RAS or HAP will be reckonable for the purposes of determining the household’s relative priority for a transfer.

Environmental Policy

Questions (189)

Joanna Tuffy

Question:

189. Deputy Joanna Tuffy asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he will provide an update on Ireland's obligations under the Kyoto protocol including any purchase of carbon credits; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47594/14]

Written answers

Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government

The first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol ran from 2008 to 2012. Under the Protocol, Ireland’s emissions were limited to 13% above the baseline amount, or a total of 314.2 Mt CO2e over the five year period. Whilst Ireland’s total national emissions for the years 2008-2012 are below our Kyoto Protocol limit, after adjustments are made to account for the impact of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme and Ireland’s forest sinks, the net outturn for the period was a deficit of 2.1 Mt CO2e.

At the end of 2013, the carbon purchasing programme had generated units of various types allowable under the Kyoto Protocol totalling just in excess of 8 Mt CO2e. Furthermore, emissions units allocated to Ireland’s New Entrants Reserve of the Emissions Trading Scheme, but not allocated to installations, totalled approximately 6.55 Mt CO2e, giving a total number of units in hand of in excess of 14.5 Mt CO2e to deal with the deficit. During 2015, after the 2012 emissions inventory have been subject to final international review, a process known as the “true-up” period will begin, during which Ireland will need to retire the requisite numbers of units to demonstrate compliance with the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol.

The Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol, which establishes a second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol from 2013 to 2020, was agreed in 2012 but has not yet entered into force. Ireland has completed that necessary domestic acceptance procedures in relation to the Doha Amendment and will be in a position to formally accept it in the first quarter of 2015.

Departmental Expenditure

Questions (190)

Éamon Ó Cuív

Question:

190. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the total amount approved by his Department through the Office of Public Works for works arising out of the storms that occurred between 13 December 2013 and 6 January 2014; the amount claimed to date by local authorities; the amount expended to date by his Department; if any unspent balances for work not completed will be carried over into 2015 to enable the local authorities complete the works; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47602/14]

Written answers

Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government

The Government decided on 11 February 2014 to allocate funding of up to €69.5 million to local authorities in the areas worst affected by the first phase of severe weather In respect of the damage caused between 13 December 2013 and 6 January 2014. This was intended to help communities by restoring roads, coastal protection, amenities/ facilities and other public infrastructure which had been damaged. It was agreed that the funding would be made available via the Votes of the appropriate Departments, viz Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport; Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine; the Office of Public Works and my Department. My Department had an initial role in collating details and costs of damage in the immediate aftermath of the severe weather, based on returns and estimates provided by local authorities.

However, the other Departments and Offices listed above are liaising directly with the local authorities on funding which falls under their remit and, therefore, my Department is not operating through the Office of Public Works as suggested in the question. In the case of funding requirements which fall under the remit of my Department, local authorities incurred current costs totalling €4million and €13.1million in capital costs for the period in question. For the 2nd phase of severe weather, from 27 January to 17 February 2014, local authorities incurred current costs of €3.5million and €8.5million in capital costs.

To date, €7million has been disbursed by my Department to local authorities in respect of their current costs. Capital costs of €5.2million are in the process of being recouped to local authorities, with a further €0.8million expected to be disbursed before the year end. Provision has been made in the Estimates of my Department for a further €10million in 2015 in respect of capital costs incurred by local authorities on repair and remediation projects. The 2015 funding position will be kept under review over the course of the year.

Departmental Meetings

Questions (191)

Éamon Ó Cuív

Question:

191. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the reason a person who was promised a meeting to discuss issues on legislation on and regulation of restricted dog breeds (details supplied) has not yet been facilitated; if this meeting will take place before Christmas; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47610/14]

Written answers

Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government

The requested meeting did not take place due to the unavailability of personnel and staff changes. A meeting will be facilitated as soon as possible.

Irish Water Appointments

Questions (192)

Lucinda Creighton

Question:

192. Deputy Lucinda Creighton asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government further to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 494 and 490 of 25 November 2014, the reason the Local Government Management Agency has not yet forwarded the minutes of the Irish Water consultative group meetings along with the list of attendees; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47620/14]

Written answers

Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government

I have been informed by the Local Government Management Agency (LGMA) that the records in question were posted to the Deputy at her Oireachtas address on 28 November 2014.