asked the Minister for the Environment if he will give details of the new housing grants; and the reason county councils have not been notified of the changes.

11.

asked the Minister for the Environment the steps that he has taken to establish co-operation with each county council and major urban local authority to establish housing information centres; whether these centres will be part of the existing local authority administration or be independent; if they will be confined to local authority housing schemes and State loans; and whether they will have any function in relation to flats and rented accommodation.

12.

asked the Minister for the Environment when he will introduce the necessary legislative and other arrangements for the £4,000 new house grant scheme.

With the permission of the Ceann Comhairle, I propose to take Questions Nos. 10, 11 and 12 together.

The special mortgage subsidy scheme and the local housing information centres are two elements in a wide-ranging package of housing initiatives which the Minister announced on 10 April 1981. In addition to these elements, the Housing Package 1981 embraces the local authority house purchase and improvement loans schemes, the local authority housing programme, a scheme for financing improvement works to rented local authority houses, tax allowances for the provision of rented residential accommodation, increased financial assistance for voluntary housing bodies, and improvements in certain housing grant schemes. A summary of the main features of the package was set out in a prominent advertisement published in the national daily newspapers on 16 April. An explanatory leaflet on the special mortgage subsidy scheme was also available to the public on that day. A circular letter giving detailed particulars of all aspects of the package issued to local housing authorities and recognised voluntary housing bodies on 8 May 1981. Amending legislation is being prepared to give statutory effect to the special mortgage subsidy scheme from 10 April 1981.

On a point of information, I should like to know which questions the Minister is replying to?

Questions Nos. 10, 11 and 12.

Question No. 11 does not have anything to do with No. 12. Perhaps it is Nos. 10, 12 and 13?

Question No. 11 asks the Minister for the Environment the steps he has taken to establish co-operation with each county council and major urban local authority to establish housing information centres. That certainly is related to the other question. Those questions ask for details of the new housing grant and the reason county councils have not been notified of the changes.

The Minister did not answer the question relating to housing information centres.

The Minister did not make any reference to them at all.

No. 13 also refers to the information centres and I will be replying to that in a moment.

The Minister is confused. Nos. 11 and 13 could be taken together and so also could Nos. 10 and 12. The Minister has not answered the question about housing information centres.

Nos. 10, 11 and 12 are taken together and Question No. 13, which follows, relates to information centres.