Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 10 Oct 2024

I ask for an update on the Department's plans to address dereliction and vacancy in our rural towns and villages. When we travel around the country, we see that many rural towns have a lot of buildings that are closed, including old shops, bars and once-thriving businesses. A lot of houses are also closed up, many of which are derelict. We have an unusual situation whereby there is a housing crisis not just in urban Ireland but in rural Ireland as well.

I would like to know what more will be done to ensure we bring life back into those towns, get people back living in them again and make businesses viable for the future. This relates to my earlier question on rural proofing and ensuring that we have policies that will direct funding into the areas where the most potential lies and activity can happen in order to regenerate many of our rural towns and villages.

I propose to take Questions Nos. 71, 75 and 76 together.

Launched in 2022, the town centre first, TCF, policy is a major cross-government policy that aims to tackle vacancy, combat dereliction and breathe new life into our town centres. It supports the vision outlined in Our Rural Future for a thriving rural Ireland. It does this by providing a framework to facilitate and resource the regeneration of Irish towns to ensure they are vibrant and viable places to live, work, invest in and visit.

Significant progress has been made since the launch of the TCF policy. For example, a national TCF office has been established in the Local Government Management Agency, LGMA, to drive the actions under the policy, 26 town regeneration officers have been appointed in each local authority to work as central drivers of TCF at a local level and a national oversight and advisory group has been established which oversees delivery of the TCF policy.

In December 2021, funding of €2.6 million was announced to support the development of 26 TCF plans. These community-based plans are produced by individual town teams drawn from local community and business representatives and are helping communities to develop a vision for their town and identify viable projects to realise that vision. This first phase of TCF plans is complete and has moved onto project delivery phase, including a plan for Lusk, in my constituency, Lusk for Life, that I was delighted to launch earlier this year. These town plans can be viewed on the TCF website at towncentrefirst.ie.

Last February, a new TCF suite of supports was launched, with an additional allocation of €4.5 million to help regenerate town centres through a bottom-up approach. This includes the development of a second phase of 26 TCF plans, the establishment and development of town teams nationwide and the completion of a large range of new community projects under a development measure. My constituency, Dublin Fingal, was recently awarded funding for two projects in Lusk under the TCF project development measure, in line with the vision provided in its TCF plan, showing the excellent progress towns such as Lusk are making in delivering on their vision for the area.

All successful projects and towns supported under the TCF suite of supports are available to view on the Department's website. The national office is establishing a clear methodology and approach to the development and structure of future plans. The preparation and finalisation of phase 2 TCF plans, including a plan for Kilrush in County Clare and Rush in County Dublin, are scheduled for 2025.

As is demonstrated by the 33 actions contained within the TCF policy, the significance of town centre first is that it provides for an integrated policy approach for the development of Irish towns, rather than it being a funded programme in and of itself. A number of major Government funding streams have now been aligned closely with TCF, including programmes such as the urban regeneration and development fund, the rural regeneration and development fund and the town and village renewal scheme.

Examples of recent funding announcements include €164 million announced for 30 regeneration projects under the rural regeneration and development fund in May and €20 million allocated under the town and village renewal scheme in April. These funding streams are critical to addressing challenges of vacancy and dereliction, and I am advised that it is intended to announce further calls for applications under both schemes in the coming weeks.

It is also important to note that there is a range of other support funding in place right across Government. I have already noted that the TCF policy has been developed in conjunction with my colleague, the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, and I encourage Deputies to look at the Government publication Bringing Back Homes which details more than 20 incentives, funded measures and grants to support a reversal of housing vacancy and dereliction. Some of the main supports available in regard to housing vacancy, in particular, include the vacant property refurbishment grant under the Croí Cónaithe initiative, the repair and leasing scheme, the buy and renew scheme and the living city initiative.

It is important that momentum is maintained in the delivery of the TCF policy. In this regard, some of the key priorities for the TCF national office over the coming months include the publication of the TCF national toolkit to support delivery, the roll-out of capacity building supports for town teams and continued research and consultation to identify examples of best practice which can be implemented in towns across Ireland.

It is also essential that we learn from our experience of the implementation of the TCF policy to date. With this in mind, there is a commitment in the policy to undertake a review of the effectiveness of the policy three years from its launch, which will be mid-2025. Any learnings that emerge from that process will be used to inform future decisions regarding TCF. In the meantime, the Government remains fully committed to the success of the TCF policy and will continue to work closely across Departments to deliver on the goal of revitalising rural towns and villages.

I thank the Minister of State.

Much work is happening in towns and villages where new footpaths and public areas and so forth are being provided, which is all welcome and positive. People cannot live on footpaths or in regenerated areas; they need homes in which to live. Many of the houses and old buildings in the towns are privately owned. While the Croí Cónaithe scheme certainly helps, it does not go anywhere near the distance it needs to go to get many of these buildings regenerated and brought back to life. The reason is that for most people who own them, those buildings are more of a liability than an asset. It might be an old house in a town with big thick stone walls and rooms the size of wardrobes that was built 100 years ago. To go inside to try to do something with it would probably cost far more than it would to knock it down and build a new building. That is the reality of it and that is why the Croí Cónaithe scheme, as welcome as it, does not go nearly far enough to be able to create that kind of regeneration. In some cases, I suggest we need to see local authorities trying to purchase some of these buildings to regenerate them back into housing stock or for public and community use.

The Minister of State outlined quite a bit of information there. However, I was hoping to get an expected timeline for the second phase of the town centre first programme for towns such as Kilrush in County Clare. Specifically on Kilrush, Pobal did its deprivation report there last year which pointed to Kilrush being the most severely deprived settlement in County Clare. It is the only area to be classed as extremely disadvantaged in the whole county. For example, out of a population of 306, only 6% are attending third-level education, one in three are unemployed and 47% of households were recorded as lone parent families. We have a number of vacancies in Kilrush town. It has one of the highest rates in the county along with Shannon but also in respect of industrial units. There is lot of work to be done there.

One of the best ways I can describe to the Deputy the potential of the town centre first policy is from what I have seen in my own area. Much of it is capital investment for sure, but the starting phase of much of it was actually consultation with the local community who knew their town best. That happened in Lusk. There was huge consultation and huge input. People are obviously very interested in improving the community and the village in which they live. It was an enormous consultation with lots of ideas put together. Then, it would have been about meeting the planners head on.

A town centre first policy was developed for Lusk and now we have a blueprint for the town going forward. It is not just a blueprint; it is one that fits in with the capital programmes that are available in my Department and other Departments. One of the things we have been able to do in recent months with that blueprint for Lusk in particular is give funding for two things, which are small steps but will bring life back into the town. For example, we are looking at two sites for a skateboard park. A big problem in Lusk is that there is not enough for young people to do. That is a small step in the right direction. Lusk is in the middle of a huge market gardening area and yet the centre of the town has been hollowed out. We are, therefore, exploring how to bring a farmers' market into the centre of the town. There is huge scope for it there. What has happened in Lusk has given hope to the people in the town next door to it, in Rush, in that we have now provided them with funding to start the ball rolling as well. To be fair to Fingal County Council, and we need the council involved here, it has started to move in that regard. There are five derelict sites on the main street in Rush with derelict site notices on them. The council is prepared to move on them unless someone puts their hand up for them. It is, therefore, having an impact.

The Deputy asked a question with regard to investment in Kilrush. My understanding is that it was part of the second tranche. There has been some funding started there. I understand €30,000 was put in that direction. I am not sure what the council there is doing with that yet, but I can certainly look for more and get back to the Deputy on what the plan is. Kilrush is in a good place, however. If it is on the list at all, albeit the second tranche, then I would hope more will follow.

We know and appreciate that some advances are happening in many of these areas and that is very welcome. We are still in a situation where we do not have people living in these areas. I appreciate that derelict site notices are up and that is a help. It is the big stick with which to beat people to try to force them to do something. However, there need to be more initiatives on the other side to create some kind of fund to assist people to try to do something with many of these properties, or at least a system to move them on to somebody else who will do something with them. As I said, in many cases they have been laying derelict for decades and nothing is going to happen to them unless there is some initiative to make something happen. A big part of that is having a carrot to provide some kind of funding to assist people in that manner.

The Minister of State mentioned that more money is being rolled out and there is going to be a review of how this money has been spent up to now and what positives have come from it. That is welcome because these things need to be reviewed. Of course, there are people in many of these towns who have complaints and objections. They feel that a lot of the parking has been taken away and that there are an awful lot of other issues in this. All that needs to be weighed up because there needs to be balance as well. We also need to look not just at the town centres but at the back lands, as it were, of towns. There are sometimes opportunities behind some of these houses to create spaces and access for people, particularly people who need to live in those areas.

I thank the Minister of State for that information. I welcome any kind of engagement on where the €30,000 is going. I know there was consultation in respect of the old Mars Cinema building in Kilrush. I was delighted to see that was open for all the community to come along and have their say.

I have been contacted by a number of business owners in the Kilrush town area. They have properties above their shops, and they want to see them turned into rental accommodation, for example. Along with the review the Minister of State outlined, we could find other ways to inject funding into these communities where we know deprivation is high to give them a fighting chance to get those necessary works done on those properties. There is a huge demand for one-bed and two-bed properties on the housing list in County Clare. It would be very beneficial to see an expansion of the vacant refurbishment scheme and the additional funding the Minister of State outlined that will come with the town centre first scheme.

I do not have a list of all the incentives that are in the Department of housing, but there are incentives for that over-the-shop vacancy and other recent incentives. On the town centre first scheme, local knowledge and consultation with the community has to be the basis of it. My understanding of the allocation to Kilrush is that it is to feed into the development of a plan. Obviously, the plan is the starting point. There are other supports available to support the town team and the council to do this work. It does involve work, and we do not expect it all to be done voluntarily. I would go back to local knowledge and how it needs to come from the ground up as well. Much of the basis for the town centre first plan is that it fits with what we can provide either in the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage or the Department of Rural and Community Development in order that it is not just another plan that is left on the shelf. I can testify to the fact it is working, certainly in my area. There will be plans for further roll-out of the town team support fund as well. Again, in my area, Balrothery and Ballyboughal have been earmarked for that support. They are villages but they very much fit the description of villages that have been hollowed out. There is a strong community there, however, and people want to see life brought back into the centre. This policy is working and will work into the future. I look forward to the review. We are eager to review it because we want this to work. People want this to work as well. We are going in the right direction.

I want to get an update on the strategy for Gaeltacht and island communities. Deputy Ó Laoghaire tabled this question because a lot of people who live on the islands are that bit apart from the rest and certainly need extra investment, especially with communications, transport facilities and ways of making sure they are connected and have opportunities equal to those who live on the mainland. Many of our Gaeltacht communities are also under huge stress. We are looking forward to the publication of the planning guidelines for rural areas and Gaeltacht areas, which has been promised for so long and has not happened. That is one of the key things we need to get delivered.

Our Living Islands: National Island Policy 2023-2033 was launched in June of last year on the Gaeltacht island of Árainn Mhór, County Donegal. Our Living Islands is a substantial document; a ten-year policy backed up by rolling three-year action plans.

It has time-bound commitments so that Departments and agencies across Government can be held to account for its implementation. The policy serves the communities of all our populated offshore islands, both Gaeltacht and non-Gaeltacht.

The Irish language is an essential part of community identity and heritage on a significant number of our populated offshore islands, especially the Gaeltacht islands. Statutory responsibility for the Irish language and the Gaeltacht rests with the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media. That Department was represented on the interdepartmental committee which oversaw the development of the national islands policy and action plan.

Our Living Islands is a policy for the whole of Government. My Department's responsibility for the islands relates primarily to connectivity through subsidised transport services and supporting infrastructure development, along with overall policy co-ordination to support and sustain communities on our islands.

My Department chairs the monitoring committee, which was formed to oversee the implementation of Our Living Islands. There are seven islanders on this committee, three from the non-Gaeltacht islands, three from Gaeltacht islands, a representative of Comhar na nOileán, the local development company for the islands, and a representative from Údarás na Gaeltachta. The monitoring committee continues to engage with key Departments and State bodies on progress with the implementation of the action plan. It is due to have its next meeting later this morning.

Income is an issue for people living on many of the islands. They must have an opportunity to make an income. They are surrounded by the sea and, for many of them, fishing is one of the few ways they have to get an income. Many of the small fishing communities that live on the islands have great problems in getting quota, in particular for the inshore sector. There must be a focus on that to ensure they can get a fair share and get an income.

That issue also relates to infrastructure and piers. The Minister of State mentioned piers. Many of the piers on the islands are in a deplorable state and need a lot of investment as well.

Housing is also a difficulty. I suggest the Minister of State speaks to the Minister about the planning guidelines to ensure they are published as quickly as possible so that we can get clarity and that they provide hope for the future. The people who live on the islands, like people who live in most rural and Gaeltacht communities, want to see their children come back and to have families in the area where they live, go to school where they went to school, play for their local football club and be involved in the local community. They do not have that opportunity if they cannot have a home or an income and livelihood in the area. They are the key elements that must be put in place. As part of that, the Government must invest in infrastructure and create opportunities for people on the islands and in Gaeltacht regions.

I am happy to take back the Deputy's request for an update on the expected publication date of the planning guidelines. There are specific housing incentive supports for the islands, including to address dereliction. My Department provides subsidies for additional transport costs involved for islanders. That was reviewed during the cost-of-living crisis and in some cases it was increased as well. Údarás na Gaeltachta has been identified as the lead key body or joint stakeholder for a number of actions. It is also represented on the monitoring committee.

It is worth pointing out some of the policy measures that we have in place. For example, local enterprise offices in Údarás na Gaeltachta and other enterprise agencies work with local development companies and co-operatives on the islands to ensure island-based enterprises have access to a full range of supports, including expert mentors to assist them in reaching wider markets. We have a set of measures and each one of them is looked at through the Gaeltacht lens as well, with the assistance of Údarás na Gaeltachta.

I commend Údarás na Gaeltachta, a body that has done tremendous work. It has been a shining example of what can be achieved when proper investment is made in an area or sector. Such bodies can deliver and not just pay for themselves but give rise to a multiplier effect in rural communities. They generally work in Gaeltacht regions.

The other issue that must be addressed is tourism. The islands have a unique tourism offering that must be developed. More assistance must be put in place to ensure a tourism offering is put in place on islands and in Gaeltacht regions. We have an opportunity in that regard. We made some advances through the marketing of the Wild Atlantic Way by Bord Fáilte, but a lot more could be done. Tourism on the islands in particular is something that must be examined. This comes back to having adequate infrastructure in place to get people safely to and from the islands. Investment is also required on the islands. When we talk about rural communities that have been left behind, island communities have been left further behind than anywhere else. For that reason, we must focus on putting the investment in place for the infrastructure to properly develop the islands.

I fully agree with the Deputy. We must protect the islands and bring life back into them. They are a part of our national identity as well. I very much agree with his point on tourism, which is more developed on some islands than others. I was on the Aran Islands last summer, where tourism is very well developed. I was more recently on Cape Clear in Cork as well. We have made some very important tourism commitments. One of them is to assess the feasibility of developing new coastal walking trails and cycling routes to promote walking and cycling as part of the island experience. There is a policy measure to encourage water sports providers on the islands and to examine the feasibility of establishing new activity-based experiences that positively contribute to sustainable economic development and environmental conservation. Examples of that include sea tours, angling, kayaking, scuba diving and so on. There is also a commitment to investigate the opportunity for dark sky accreditation for the islands and to pursue astrotourism. We are very aware of the potential for tourism on the islands and we have commitments in that regard.

Will the Minister of State outline the supports in place to assist community organisations that do not have the capacity to apply for funding? In my experience, in many cases, community associations in more affluent areas with professional people have more capacity. On the opposite side, in working-class areas where great people are doing unbelievable work on the ground, many of them do not have the skill set to access funding. There is quite a lot of work involved in trying to access funding. The Minister of State might respond to the question, please.

Supports are available across my Department's broad range of funding programmes to build the capacity of groups to engage in application processes. The social inclusion and community activation programme is the Government's primary social inclusion intervention. The newest iteration features a dedicated core area of community animation, focusing on building capacity in community representative structures, establishing new community groups, and empowering communities to lead on identifying their own needs and sustainably managing their response to challenges into the future.

Within the social inclusion area, capacity is also being built through the Empowering Communities programme, which aims to empower local communities to craft their own response to area-based poverty, social exclusion and the resulting consequences, with the support of the relevant local community development committee.

With regard to the community services programme, CSP, last year my Department provided a series of workshops to build capacity in organisations to apply for funding under the programme. Specific funding of €150,000 was also made available through the Dormant Accounts Fund to provide support and capacity-building in organisations that applied under CSP strand 1 and were categorised as eligible with potential.

Related to this, the newly established social innovation measures under the European Social Fund Plus aim to enhance capacity within organisations involved in social innovation and social enterprise. That may not relate directly to the Deputy's constituency, but the LEADER programme is delivered through local action groups and their implementing partners, who work on the ground with prospective applicants to help guide them through the LEADER application process and to see their projects through to completion. This locally led approach and the animation of local communities is a core part of the programme.

With regard to the renewal of town centres, the town centre first policy is a joint initiative between my Department and the Department of Housing, Local Government, and Heritage. It is putting in place a suite of supports and tools to help businesses and local communities deliver on the vision for their area.

More generally, my Department has a strong focus on building the capacity of organisations within the community and voluntary sector. Under Sustainable, Inclusive and Empowered Communities, a comprehensive training needs assessment process is now complete with assessment reports due for publication later in this quarter. It is my intention to work with the sector to implement the report recommendations to meet the identified needs.

The Minister of State spoke about capacity and funding being in place. I represent an area in Cork called Ballyvolane. It is now a massive area with a lot of privately built houses but also social housing. There is a mixture. There is no community centre. Right now, there is a plan to build 1,000 more houses, and in the wider Ballyvolane area there is the possibility of 2,000 houses and no community centre. It is unbelievable. For years, people have been trying to build a community centre there. This is a fabulous and vibrant community. Do you know what happened? Red tape, bureaucracy, Government officials and a lack of support wore people down. Do you know what they said? They said they could not be bothered. By the time people started making progress, all their kids were reared. They were already out of school, in college, working or gone. I want to work with the Minister of State. We have a huge issue here. The communities that do not have the capacity need it. There needs to be boots on the ground to help these communities.

A couple of points occur to me. If I do not get to them all, I will do it in follow-up. There is a responsibility, if the Deputy is talking specifically about community centres, on the local authority which needs to engage with its local community. I know there is a good community department in Cork and I know a few of the people in there who would be committed. I also know the area of Ballyvolane and I am familiar with the situation the Deputy describes. This is one of the reasons we developed the community centre investment fund as well. That is a big fund with large capital allocations, but it requires the local authority to engage, not just with what is happening on the ground but with us as well. The most accessible support we have, particularly in the Deputy's area, is the SICAP, and in terms of building community capacity, the workers in Cork City Partnership, which I am sure the Deputy is familiar with, would probably be his first go-to point of contact.

Fair Hill is another area in my constituency. The current group of volunteers, because that is what they are, have been doing unbelievable work there for the past ten years. Cork City Council gave them a council house. They have hundreds of children between community groups, youth groups, art groups and counselling. The Minister of State would want to see the work they are doing out of a house. This current group has been together for ten years - some of them even longer - trying to get a community centre. It is under way, but it is so slow. Funding was received this year to clear a site. There is a site they want to progress, but realistically it will take years. Is there a way we can fast-track this, for the Department to put in the resources to work with local authorities? Cork City Council is working with these people. There are different groups, but it needs someone to grab the project, as it were, and put a team around them. We need someone like that. Can the Minister of State deliver that, or can he find a mechanism to deliver it?

I am identifying an immediate need and a long-term need. Building projects take time. If there is a site and the council is engaged with it, we are on for talking to them. We now have the community centre investment fund. It is oversubscribed, but there is an option. There are other options with possible smaller allocations.

One thing I will put out there when it comes to immediate need, and it is something I have worked on with the Minister for Education, is that we have a lot of schools beside Fair Hill, which the Deputy and I are familiar with, and while I do not know the extent to which they open their facilities in the evenings and at weekends, there have been revised guidelines through the Department of Education which are encouraging schools to open up to the wider community in the evenings and at weekends. There are facilities throughout the country lying idle because the board of the school or whatever does not want to go to the trouble-----

Yes, that comes up and we can engage with them on it. There are ways around it. A lot of schools open up and some do not, but there is an onus on schools. They are not just education facilities. They are key pieces of infrastructure in the wider community. There may be potential there. I do not know the specifics of the school.

I propose to take Questions Nos. 74 and 79 together.

The local improvement scheme supports the improvement of rural roads and laneways that are not usually maintained by local authorities. As part of Our Rural Future, the Government is committed to ensuring the LIS is funded into the future.

In April of this year, funding of more than €40 million for the 2024 and 2025 schemes was announced, which included additional once-off funding in respect of 2024. This announcement of scheme funding over two years was aimed towards helping local authorities better plan their work programmes, thus supporting their efforts in meeting the strong demand for the scheme at local level. The 2024-25 allocation brings the total amount of funding provided for the scheme to just under €170 million since 2017. To date, this funding has resulted in improvement works on more than 4,000 roads, benefiting almost 20,000 landowners and residents in these rural areas.

Since 2017, Cork has been allocated a total of €12.7 million in local improvement scheme funding. This figure includes the 2024-25 allocation of €2.8 million as well as a total allocation of €420,000 to fund repair works on Cork's island roads. Cork County Council has completed repair works on a total of 233 rural roads and laneways and has indicated that 31 roads will be completed by the end of 2024, with a further 14 roads to be completed in 2025.

Since the scheme launched in 2017, County Meath has been allocated a total of €5.5 million in funding. This figure includes the 2024-25 allocation of €1.3 million. Meath County Council has completed repair works on a total of 100 rural roads and laneways and has indicated that eight roads will be completed in 2024, with a further six roads to be completed in 2025.

While my Department provides funding for the scheme, it is administered by each local authority, which is responsible for the selection and prioritisation of roads in accordance with the eligibility criteria set out in the scheme outline. Local authorities may rely on existing waiting lists or reopen their lists to new applicants each year. Local authorities can complete repair works themselves or engage private contractors to complete works on their behalf in accordance with applicable procurement rules and public spending code guidelines.

For works completed in 2024, local authorities have until November to submit documentation to draw down funding. Following the completed drawdown process, an updated status relating to remaining demand will be available across local authority areas. It should be noted that local authorities can submit their 2025 priority lists for approval from January 2025. Should savings within the Department be identified, the Department will consider allocating an additional tranche of funding in 2025 to address the demand under the scheme. This approach has worked well in recent years in providing additional resources to local authorities.

I thank the Minister of State for his response. The funding is always welcome, but it does not go far enough. If you combine it with other improvement or involvement schemes like CIS, there is significant demand. There are long waiting lists. For those two schemes there is a ten-year waiting list in County Meath alone.

In terms of the level of funding, is there a consideration of the significant increase in costs to local authorities in delivering these works? The same applies to communities. Second, is there a review or a planned review of the eligibility criteria?

I did not realise either, so it is fine. The most welcome part of the Minister of State's few words was at the end where he said that if additional moneys become available, he might be able to supplement the budget, and he might need to do that.

I have been talking to local engineers in Cork. The price of tar or chip has more or less doubled since 2019. Due to the significant inflationary increase in doing the projects, since 2019 fewer kilometres are being resurfaced or repaired than before, despite the fact that budgets have increased overall. I believe it is imperative that we increase the overall budget. That needs to be done.

At a recent county council meeting, one of the directors said that funding is the significant limitation in expanding the programme and cutting through the waiting list. There are dozens of roads in Cork on a waiting list. To be fair to them, Deputies Michael Healy-Rae and Danny Healy-Rae raise this issue consistently. There are hundreds of roads on the waiting list in County Kerry. It is one of those programmes that encourages communities and individuals in private laneways to get together. It is imperative that we look at resourcing it.

I thank the Deputies. There was a recent review of eligibility. The scheme eligibility criteria were amended for 2024. Eligible road projects are those that involve the improvement of non-public roads which provide access to two or more parcels of land that are owned or occupied by different persons, one of whom must be using it for agricultural purposes or harvesting. Evidence of agricultural activity can be proven by other means than a herd number; for example, farm payments or mart receipts can be used. The reduction from two persons to one person was in response to feedback received from local representatives to help to ensure that more families can qualify for the scheme. The requirement that there be two or more land owners or occupiers linked to the road as part of the application remains. I am not sure whether there are further plans for review. However, that is the most recent change.

In regard to increased funding, the double allocation was in response to that to some extent. There was an issue with local authorities getting the single allocation late in the year but we were able to get around that this year by giving the double allocation in advance. As the Deputy has identified, if there are underspends we can try to move things around. If more resources become apparent through the course of 2025, we know that the LIS is something that can generally take that. That is not always the case. There is not always a direct relationship between funding and getting the job done, as the Deputies know. Sometimes there is difficulty with the local authority sourcing and finding contractors within the time allowed as well. That has been an issue in some counties. The Minister, Deputy Humphreys, knows the value of the LIS and has certainly made some changes recently to try to make its impact felt throughout the country even more.

I thank the Minister of State for his response. These popular schemes are oversubscribed. It is important for the Government to keep the issue under close review. In regard to the criteria, the Minister of State identified some of the challenges at local authority level, such as the increased cost of works and the smaller number of contractors available. We need to look at every flexibility that we possibly can. There is demand for this but also a huge need for it. We know that many lanes and non-public roads are in desperate need of maintenance and repair. This is important work. In my own county, there is huge demand for this, it is hugely oversubscribed and it is desperately needed. There is potential in it if it is adequately supported.

I will be brief because I have four supplementaries. First, will the Minister of State clarify that Cork County Council has drawn its full allocation from the previous year? I believe it has.

Second, the Minister of State mentioned the double allocation, and obviously that additional funding is welcome, but Cork County Council requested more than €5 million last year and received just €1.7 million. Such a massive shortfall leads to the expansion of the waiting list, not the cutting of it.

Third, Deputy O'Rourke touched on this issue in relation to private contractors. Are county councils allowed to engage with private contractors if they are struggling to maintain the workload themselves? Is that a local decision that can be made? Is there a policy direction from the Department?

Fourth, many of the former county areas absorbed into Cork City Council were due for LIS or CIS works at the time. They fell off the list when they were absorbed into the Cork City Council boundary. As I said to the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, previously, special provision should be made for those former county areas that were absorbed into the Cork city boundary because they are predominantly rural in their nature. I would appreciate it if that could be reviewed.

The Deputy will appreciate that I might not have the answers to all of the questions he has asked. As the LIS is not my dedicated function, I am not all over the detail. He asked about the level of drawdown by Cork County Council. My understanding is that the council fell short some years back but has improved its drawdown rate more recently. I will get some facts for the Deputy on that.

While I will have to confirm whether local authorities are allowed to engage with contractors, my understanding is that this is possible, absolutely. Really, the job of the local authority is to engage with contractors to get the job done. However, let me confirm that.

I am aware of some of the areas that were brought into the Cork City Council area. It is on the radar of the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, as well.

There was a fourth question that I do not recall.

I am jumping all over the place because many Members are not here. We might be able to take Question No. 91 because Deputy Martin Kenny is present to introduce it on behalf of Deputy Ó Laoghaire. Likewise, Deputy Darren O'Rourke is here to introduce Question No. 93 and Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan is here to introduce Question No. 98.

I take it that the Minister of State was not expecting us to reach Question No. 91, which relates to participation in libraries around the country, the number of people who are members of our libraries and how much they are used. What can be done to get more people to use our library facilities, which in many areas are excellent? We spoke earlier about needing more investment. We never thought we would get as far as Question No. 91, but we have reached it because so few Deputies are here this morning. Maybe there is an election coming up. That could be the reason.

To be fair, I did not expect Question No. 98 to be reached. Nationally, €30 million was allocated for greenfield sites for new community centres in the last round of the community centre investment fund. I am aware of four projects in Cork, two of which were mentioned by Deputy Gould earlier. I am advocating for a significant upward review of that €30 million in light of the significant requests coming in from Cork alone. I hope this will happen.