Minister for Housing and Planning Jan O'Sullivan, TD, has announced the first funding allocation under the €50m energy efficiency programme for local authority homes.

€10m will be invested this year improving the energy efficiency of some 5,000 local authority homes.

Speaking about initiative, Minister O'Sullivan said: "Energy efficiency programmes result in lower energy bills, improved housing stock and reduced carbon emissions. The major three year programme I announced in June also has the capacity to create hundreds of jobs in the green energy sector.

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"I've worked closely with my colleague, Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Brendan Howlin, to introduce this energy efficiency programme. We are determined to see €50m invested over three years. This will reduce the energy bills of 25,000 families who currently live in local authority houses with very poor insulation. It is part of a wider Government stimulus programme that will see significant investment in schools and roads. I expect the energy efficiency initiative will create up to 1,000 jobs – in both the private sector and among community-based organisations that deliver energy efficiency measures."

(CD/JP)