Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 12 June 2018
1295. Deputy Fiona O'Loughlin asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the amount drawn down under the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund per annum to date; the number of affordable homes built; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24725/18]
View answerMy Department issued the first call for proposals under the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund (LIHAF) to all local authorities in August 2016. Preliminary approval was given to 34 projects in March 2017 and I have since fully approved funding for 30 of those projects, including roads, bridges and parks, at a cost of approximately €195 million, with an associated housing delivery of 20,000 housing units by 2021.
All projects that received preliminary approval in March 2017 were allowed to proceed to design phase immediately after that and most are going through the planning and tendering phases at the moment, with one at construction stage.
Local authorities can draw down the funding allocated to their projects at any stage, once the project cost has been incurred. My Department invited the 14 local authorities involved to submit their first tranche of certified expenditure at the end of 2017 and the total submitted by local authorities for draw down was €1.6 million.
While there was an underspend by local authorities in 2017, funding for LIHAF is ring-fenced within the overall housing budget and through proactive management of the broader housing programme, any LIHAF underspend in 2017 was diverted to other housing activities, ensuring that the funding available in 2017 was fully applied to housing priorities.
The low level of the draw-down to date by local authorities reflects the stages which these infrastructure projects are at currently. The expenditure incurred during the design, planning and tendering stages is significantly lower than that at the construction stage so a major increase in drawdown is expected as projects progress through to construction.
While I am anxious for the infrastructure and the housing to be delivered as fast as possible, I recognise that local authorities must observe proper design, planning and tendering procedures. My Department will continue to monitor progress on these sites and ensure that every effort is made to secure the timely delivery of the infrastructure involved.
While LIHAF is designed primarily as a housing supply activation measure, as part of the terms of the fund, local authorities were asked to leverage the funding to ensure that housing activated by LIHAF would be made more affordable. Following final approval of projects, details of the projected delivery under LIHAF for all 30 projects were updated and are available at www.rebuildingireland.ie/lihaf. Some of the housing will be delivered in tandem with the infrastructure, with other sites needing the infrastructure to be in place before housing can be delivered. As the projects move forward over 2018 to 2021, my Department will be in a position to update on delivery of housing, including the provision of reduced-cost and affordable homes on these sites.
