Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 5 November 2020
343. Deputy Verona Murphy asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development the status of the town and village renewal scheme funding programme; if there are plans for this programme to be extended to 2021 and beyond; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34475/20]
View answerThe Town and Village Renewal Scheme is a key element of my Department's Rural Development Investment Programme which also includes the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund, the LEADER programme, the Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme, CLAR and the Local Improvement Scheme.
Since the Town and Village Renewal Scheme was introduced in 2016, over €78 million has been allocated to more than 1,000 projects under the scheme.
The 2020 scheme was tailored to help rural towns and villages respond to the challenges presented by COVID-19. This year's scheme includes an Accelerated Measure which has enabled towns and villages to introduce initiatives immediately to support increased footfall and enable people to shop and socialise safely in accordance with public health guidelines.
The scheme also includes a Standard Measure which places a focus on the recovery of towns and villages from the impact of COVID-19 in the medium-term.
The €15 million that was originally budgeted for the scheme for 2020, was increased by a further €10 million in the Government's July Stimulus Package. This enabled the Accelerated Measure to be expanded and allowed 363 projects to be approved for funding of over €10.4 million.
Applications under the Standard Town and Village Renewal Scheme are currently being assessed and the successful projects will be announced when that process is complete.
The Town and Village Scheme will operate again in 2021, with a budget of €20 million. This includes an additional €5 million to support the development of remote working facilities in towns and villages across the country. Details of the 2021 scheme will be announced in the New Year.
