53. Deputy Joanna Tuffy asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the amount spent on rent supplement, by month, in 2014 and to date in 2015; the number of families in receipt of the supplement by county; the number of new applicants who have been provided with the supplement in 2015; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42157/15]

Rent supplement plays a vital role in housing families and individuals, with the scheme currently supporting approximately 63,000 people. A breakdown of rent supplement recipients on a county basis is provided in the tabular statement below. Over 17,200 rent supplement tenancies have been awarded this year, of which approximately 5,600 are in Dublin.

Over €298 million has been committed for rent supplement for 2015 - which represents a transfer of funding in excess of €20 million to the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government to support the new Housing Assistance Payment (HAP). Expenditure to date in 2015 is in excess of €260 million and a monthly breakdown of expenditure is provided in the attached tabular statement. Expenditure on the scheme for 2014 was some €338 million.

Rent supplement is a demand-led scheme and Government will continue to ensure that the necessary funding for the scheme is in place.

Table 1: Rent Supplement Recipients by County, End October 2015

Table 2: Rent Supplement: Expenditure: January 2015 To Date