Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 15 February 2024
129. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will increase funding for the local authority retrofit programme to enable all local authority housing that needs it to be retrofitted; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6750/24]
View answerSince 2013, Exchequer funding has been provided through my Department's Energy Efficiency Retrofit Programme (EERP) to support local authorities with the retrofit of local authority owned homes requiring insulation and energy upgrade works. Over the period 2013 - 2023, local authorities received over €308 million in funding to carry out energy upgrade works on over 79,000 properties.
In 2021 a new holistic approach was applied to the Energy Efficient Retrofit Programme (EERP), designed around the Programme for Government's commitment led by the Department for the Environment, Climate and Communications that calls for the 'retrofit' of 500,000 homes to a B2 (BER)/Cost Optimal Equivalent standard by 2030, of which, approximately 36,500 are expected to be local authority owned homes, with grant funding provided by my Department for those local authority housing retrofits.
Works eligible under my Department's revised EERP include attic/cavity wall insulation or external wall insulation where required, windows and doors replacement, heat pump installation and ancillary and associated works.
The budget under the new EERP programme has increased considerably year on year since its initial launch in 2021 with a budget of €65 million and now stands at €90 million for 2024.
An annualised breakdown of the total funding provided and the number of properties upgraded under the Energy Efficiency Retrofit programme for the years 2013-2023 is available on my Department's website at the following link:
www.gov.ie/en/publication/668c1-energy-efficiency-retrofitting-programme-expenditure-output/
My Department also introduced a pilot Midlands Energy Retrofit Programme in 2020, the details of which are found below. A further 674 properties were retrofitted to a BER of B2/ Cost Optimal Equivalent and these figures are in addition to the National Retrofit Programme.
www.gov.ie/en/publication/b86b3-midlands-energy-retrofit-programme-expenditure-and-units/#
Further details in relation to EERP 2024 including individual allocations will be announced shortly. Furthermore where local authorities can retrofit additional dwellings this year, above their initial target, my Department will make every effort to accede to additional funding requests for this important work.
