Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 12 July 2022
1155. Deputy Aindrias Moynihan asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development the amount that has been budgeted for the local improvement scheme in 2022 for County Cork; the demand for the scheme in County Cork; the financial allocations that have been made to date by local authorities in the county; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37733/22]
View answerThe Local Improvement Scheme (LIS) supports the improvement of rural roads and laneways that are not normally maintained by local authorities. As part of Our Rural Future, the Government is committed to ensuring that the LIS is funded into the future. The scheme makes an important contribution to connectivity in rural Ireland.
The scheme was reintroduced in 2017 following a number of years with no dedicated funding. From 2017 to 2021, my Department allocated €80 million towards improvement works on over 3,000 non-public roads and lanes benefiting over 13,300 landowners and residents in these rural areas.
I was pleased, as part of Budget 2022, to announce an increase in the base funding for LIS from €10.5 million to €11 million this year. I announced details of the 2022 LIS in early April, which included €879,099 for County Cork.
Since the scheme was reintroduced in 2017, County Cork has been allocated a total of €6.94 million. This represents the third largest allocation at a national level.
Last year, I was in a position to double the initial LIS allocation to €21 million following the identification of savings in other capital areas. This year, I am continuing to closely monitor expenditure patterns. Should savings emerge, I will give consideration to again allocating additional funding to the scheme.
