Kerry County Council accessed 93% of funding allocated to it for Traveller accommodation last year.
That’s according to information from the Department of Housing and Local Government, which shows the council has drawn down €6,000 in such funding so far this year.
The details were revealed following a Dáil question from Dublin Mid-West Sinn Féin TD, Eoin Ó Broin.
In accordance with the Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act 1998, housing authorities have responsibility for assessing the accommodation needs of Travellers, and preparing, adopting and implementing multi-annual Traveller Accommodation Programmes.
The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage’s role is to ensure there are adequate structures and supports to help councils.
Last year, Kerry County Council was allocated €77,200 for Traveller-specific accommodation from the Department, and sought €75,131, or 93% of that.
This year, to facilitate ease of access to funding, the Department is no longer allocating specific budgets to individual local authorities from the €14.5 million available.
Instead, it’s open to all councils to apply for and drawdown funds at any time throughout the year, and this is actively encouraged.
As of mid-May this year, Kerry County Council had drawn down €5,928 for Traveller accommodation.
