Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 30 March 2004
458 Mr. Wall asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the plans his Department has to provide the funding necessary to overcome the waiting lists for disabled person’s grant presently with Kildare County Council; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10165/04]
Amharc ar fhreagra459 Mr. Wall asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the plans his Department has to overcome the waiting lists in relation to essential repairs grants presently with Kildare County Council; if he will supply the necessary funding to overcome the list; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10166/04]
Amharc ar fhreagra485 Mr. Penrose asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if his attention has been drawn to the problems being experienced by local authorities which find themselves with totally inadequate finance to meet the demands by applicants for disabled person grants; if his Department has carried out an audit of the waiting lists for such grants in each local authority area; if, in this context, he will provide additional funding to the local authorities to deal with the problems being experienced; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9974/04]
Amharc ar fhreagra
I propose to take Questions Nos. 458, 459 and 485 together.
A capital provision of €65 million has been made for the payment of disabled person's and essential repairs grants in 2004 compared to the final outturn of €58 million in 2003. Notification of individual allocations to local authorities for the scheme in 2004 will issue as soon as all authorities have submitted their expenditure outturns for 2003 and estimates for 2004. Details of the level of applications on hands have also been sought in this context and the available information on the level of applications for assistance under the disabled person's grant scheme at 31 December 2003 will be published in the Department's quarterly bulletin of housing statistics.
The administration of the disabled person's grant scheme is a matter for individual local authorities. The framework for the operation of the scheme is laid down in statutory regulations and, as far as practicable, is designed to give an appropriate degree of flexibility to local authorities. It is a matter for the authorities to decide on the level of funding to be provided for the scheme in their areas from within the allocations notified to them for the payment of the disabled person's and essential repairs grant schemes and to manage the operation of the schemes within these allocations. My Department recoups to local authorities two thirds of their expenditure on the payment of individual grants and it is the responsibility of the authorities to fund their one third contribution from their own resources from amounts provided for that purpose in their annual estimates of expenditure. An increased capital allocation would not, of itself, allow increased expenditure by the authority without a corresponding upward revision of the authority's own provision for expenditure on the scheme.
The significant improvements which have been made in recent years to the maximum disabled person's grant and the level of recoupment available have resulted in increased levels of demand with expenditure on the scheme increasing from €13 million for 2,455 grants in 1998 to €52.6 million for 5,932 grants in 2002. In line with this increase in the Department's capital provision for the scheme, recoupment costs have also increased from €6.3 million for 2,512 grants in 1998 to almost €37.5 million for 6,153 grants in 2003. In that time the maximum grant has doubled from €10,158 to €20,320. These very significant increases in the levels of funding provided are clear indication of the Government's commitment to the disabled person's grant scheme.
A review of the disabled person's grant scheme is being finalised in the Department. On its completion I will be in a position to determine the changes, if any, required to the regulations governing the scheme to ensure that the funding available is directed at those persons in greatest need of such assistance.
