Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 26 March 2026
522. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht the details of all grant aid allocated to County Kerry under all schemes operated under his Department since 1 January 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23303/26]
View answerMy Department operates a large number of current and capital schemes aimed at supporting both rural development, community development and the Gaeltacht and the Irish language. The main capital investment funding delivered by my Department is through the rural development programme. This work is underpinned by the national rural development policy, Our Rural Future, and other policy documents such as the Town Centre First and the National Outdoor Recreation Strategy 2023-2027.
The key capital investment programmes include:
• the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF)
• LEADER
• the Town and Village Renewal Scheme (TVRS)
• the Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme (ORIS)
• the CLÁR programme
• the Community Centre Investment Fund (CCIF), and
• the Community Recognition Fund (CRF).
There are also a range of other smaller supports including the Local Enhancement Programme (LEP)/ Community Enhancement Programme (CEP), the Walks Scheme, Tidy Towns, Connected Hubs and Broadband Connection Points.
In 2025, County Kerry was allocated approximately €24.4 million in funding through the wide range of schemes operated by my Department.
Some examples of the significant capital investment in County Kerry in 2025 include:
• €315,000 was awarded under the Community Recognition Fund to refit the pool system of the Kerry Aqua Dome
• €500,000 was also provided under the Community Recognition Fund to upgrade Derreen Sports Complex in Killarney
• €100,000 was allocated under the Community Centre Investment Fund to extend Cahirciveen Social Services Centre and provide improved meeting facilities
• Community Recognition Funding of €81,300 was provided for a walking track at Glenbeigh Glencarr GAA and €50,000 was allocated from the same programme to Glenbeigh Community Garden/Sensory Garden
To date in 2026, over €11.9 million has been allocated to Kerry from the various schemes operated by my Department, this includes over €1.1 million to upgrade rural roads and laneways through the Local Improvement Scheme.
Kerry has seen significant investment from my Department and earlier in March I was delighted to visit the county to unveil projects worth €12 million.
Information in relation to the broad range of schemes, and the details of the hundreds of individual allocations made under these schemes to groups across the country, including Kerry, is available in tabular form on my Department’s website at gov.ie - [Funding allocated by the department]: www.gov.ie/en/department-of-rural-and-community-development-and-the-gaeltacht/collections/funding-allocated-by-the-department/
