Seán Crowe
Ceist:450 Mr. Crowe asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government if he will increase funding to the central heating fund for Dublin City Council. [4625/03]
Written Answers. - Local Authority Funding.
The management, maintenance and improvement of their rented dwellings including the installation of central heating, is in principle, the responsibility of local authorities to be financed from their own resources. Where capital funding is provided under remedial or regeneration schemes operated by my Department for the upgrading of local authority dwellings, the provision of central heating may form part of the work undertaken. To date such funding has been provided to Dublin City Council under the following schemes: the remedial works scheme which assists local authorities in carrying out major essential works to dwellings in designated estates; the special area regeneration programme which consists of a once-off programme of upgrading high density older flat complexes; and the redevelopment of a number of seriously rundown flat complexes involving a mix of new building, refurbishment and, where appropriate, demolition and replacement.
My Department has provided some €391 million to date for the above schemes including over €160 million for the major programme of regeneration of Ballymun. In addition the council has been undertaking a programme, funded from its own resources, to provide central heating in its older housing stock.
Local authorities may also seek my Department's approval to use their internal capital receipts which are surplus to the requirements of the local authority housing construction and remedial works programmes for the provision of central heating in their rented housing stock.
Apart from the foregoing, there is no specific funding mechanism available from my Department for the installation of central heating in local authority rented dwellings. The council has been advised to this effect.