Vol. 540 No. 1
351 Mr. Timmins asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the basis on which the 2001 local improvement scheme grant allocation for roads was determined; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20149/01]
The 2001 allocation of £8 million under the local improvements scheme – LIS – represents an increase of 33% on the 2000 allocation of £6 million and 167% on the 1997 allocation of £3 million. Funding for the LIS in 2001 was considered in the context of the overall grant allocations for non-national roads and the number of applications on hands in each county council.
At the end of 2000 there were 4,651 applications on hands. In 2000, the funding provided enabled 913 schemes to be carried out, of which 698 were fully completed and 215 were partially completed. This £8 million allocation for 2001 will enable county councils to make good progress in reducing the number of applications they have on hands.
