376. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if as part of Budget 2027 he will examine introducing a local improvement scheme for local authorities to access that would fund the power washing of cities and towns; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54761/26]

As Minister, I recognise the importance of maintaining clean, safe and attractive public spaces in our cities, towns and villages. Responsibility for street cleaning and public realm maintenance rests in the first instance with local authorities, which receive funding through a variety of sources, including grants from Central Government, Local Property Tax (LPT), commercial rates and other locally-raised charges. Each local authority is mandated to determine its own spending priorities, while having regard to locally identified needs and available resources.

The Local Improvement Scheme, which is funded by the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht, is a separate programme aimed at supporting improvement works on private and non-publicly maintained roads and laneways, primarily in rural areas. It is not designed to fund public realm maintenance or street-cleaning activities.

My Department does not allocate specific funding for cleaning purposes as outlined in the question as these are operational matters for each individual local authority.