Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 2 May 2018
27. Deputy Tony McLoughlin asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development the allocation, both nationally and to counties Sligo and Leitrim, under the local improvement scheme since its reintroduction in 2017; and if there will be a second round of the scheme in 2018. [18945/18]
View answerI want to ask the Minister about the allocations, both nationally and in the constituency of Sligo-Leitrim and south Donegal, under the local improvement scheme since its reintroduction in 2017. Will there be another allocation this year? I congratulate the Minister because for roughly ten years no money was spent on local improvement schemes-----
The Deputy has introduced his question. I am sorry to interject, but I want to allow time for two further questions.
The local improvement scheme, LIS, is a programme for improvement works on small private and non-public roads. The scheme is funded by my Department and administered through the local authorities.
In September 2017, following a number of years when there was no dedicated funding for the scheme, I approved €10 million in funding for it. I allocated a further €7.4 million for the scheme from savings made elsewhere in my Department's Vote at the end of November 2017. The total allocation of €17.4 million for the scheme in 2017 included allocations of €496,158 to Sligo County Council and €487,947 to Leitrim County Council. Following on from the successful relaunch of the scheme in 2017, I announced details of the 2018 local improvement scheme on 27 February. I have allocated an initial amount of €10.8 million to county councils across the country under the scheme this year. The funding includes allocations of €282,000 to Sligo County Council and €250,000 to Leitrim County Council. Detailed information on the roads selected by the Sligo and Leitrim County Councils for improvement works in 2018 can be found on my Department’s website.
As part of the 2018 local improvement scheme, I also requested each county council to compile a secondary list of suitable road projects which they would have the capacity to complete should additional funding become available through my Department later in the year. I will be monitoring the position in the context of my Department's overall expenditure performance in the coming months.
I thank the Minister. I welcome the money the constituency has received since 2017. I am aware that offers have been made to a number of farmers and householders living along the routes of the local improvement schemes which have been approved by both Sligo County Council and Leitrim County Council. I believe the money that has been spent there and in every constituency in the country is to be welcomed. Every councillor in the country has been lobbying, with the aim of improving private roads for farming. In many cases, this means that the roads are brought up to a standard where they can be taken in charge by the local authorities in the various areas involved.
The Minister has allocated a sum of €10.8 million this year. I hope additional funding can be made available for local improvement schemes. It is money well spent spent and which has been taken up in every area, particularly in the areas I represent, in Sligo-Leitrim and south Donegal. It is vitally important that we receive additional funding in 2018, but I certainly welcome the €10.8 million allocated so far.
I have tabled a similar question that we probably will not reach. People are grateful to get this money. Last year there was €17 million, but this year it is down to €10 million. People are concerned that it has been clawed back by that much. Will the Minister assure us that new money or more money will be found for the rest of the year? Although the €17 million spent last year did a tremendous amount of work, there had been ten years of nothing. We ought to see an increase in the funding available from last year rather than a decrease. I hope the Minister will find the extra funds for this in the future.
I welcome the call. The Minister made money available last year and I hope that he can make more available this year. It makes a big difference to the quality of life of people in rural areas living on these roads.
I thank the three Deputies. The scheme has been very successful. This scheme had been closed for several years and has now reopened. Funding has been allocated to 1,100 roads until the end of the year.
This year's budget voted €10 million, which I have increased to €10.7 million. I will seek savings in my Department and if I have further funds available this year, I will look at the local improvement scheme, LIS, as an area in which I can spend this. I took €7.7 million in savings last year and put it into the LIS at the end of the year. That is why I have asked local authorities to give us the list, and to be fair, most local authorities have given me their priority lists. I have grant aided funding to them and asked them to come up with a second list. I will write to them again to prioritise that secondary list. If I have extra funds, that is where it will go. Deputy Scanlon is correct. This scheme has worked very well.
I want to clarify something for Deputy Calleary and others. I do not pick the schemes. The local authorities pick the schemes, and I want to put that on the record.
I believe you.
That is what the Minister is telling them.
The Deputies can look at the Ballina schemes and the number there. All I can tell them is that I did not pick them.
The Minister might write to them and tell them that.
I am delighted that my colleagues have come in to support this request. We have delivered the money over the past two years. For ten years we had no money whatever. From the Minister's track record, I hope that additional funding will be made available to the €10.7 million so far for 2018. The upgrading of roads in recent years has benefited communities, as was the case with previous local improvement schemes. I am sure the Acting Chairman, Deputy Eugene Murphy, has seen the benefits in his own constituency of Roscommon, and will associate himself with those. I thank the Minister and hope that we will continue with this local improvement scheme. It is great for local authorities which have been starved of funding for many years. It provides additional work and is good for local councillors who have lobbied for it.
On a serious note, I reiterate that I do not pick the schemes. I will look at the local authorities, and Deputy Ó Cuív supports me on this. They look for the local contribution and charge an administrative fee for the scheme. I looked at one scheme recently which cost €21,000. The Department had allocated €26,000 and the council had taken €3,000 to €4,000 from this sum for administering the scheme. I gave it €865,000 and I expect that €865,000 to be spent on roads, not on administration.
Hear, hear.
That is something that needs to be looked at. An issue which Deputy Ó Cuív raised has raised before, which I have raised with officials, and Deputy McLoughlin also brought up is the charges per square metre for roads. I want the Department to do some work on this because I want to see the €10.7 million this year, or the €17.7 million last year, put into roads. The local authority staff would be there anyway. I should not have to pay an administration fee on top of the cost of the roads, not to mention the local authorities charging €20 per square metre. That does not make sense when the private sector can do it for around €13 to €15. The scheme is a good one which I want to continue. I know the Acting Chairman admires it because many roads were done in Roscommon and he knows more will be done this year.
That is the last comment on that matter. We will move on.
We are very tight for time. Will Deputy McLoughlin forgo his introduction and we will get the answer?
I will, if the Acting Chairman lets me in afterwards.
I will indeed.
