To ask the Minister for Communities, pursuant to AQW 3402/22-27, (i) what proportion of the homelessness budget is required to deliver long term prevention measures; and (ii) what aspects of the Ending Homelessness Together strategy are not being delivered as a result of the absence of an agreed budget.

I have sought the requested information from the Chief Executive of the Northern Ireland Housing Executive, who has advised me as follows:

“(i) The Housing Executive’s initial budget bid of £48.8m for 2024/25 included £4.5m for strategic prevention initiatives, or 9.2% of the total. As noted in the Department’s EQIA Consultation, there is currently a shortfall of circa £14m in the homelessness budget and in such circumstances, programmes included in the strategic prevention initiatives are either funded at risk (e.g. funding of outside agencies) or not currently subject to funding (e.g. Homelessness Prevention Fund).

(ii) The Homelessness Strategy 2022-27 is guided by annual action plans. The Year 2 Action Plan included 42 Actions, 5 of which were not completed. Each of these actions had been identified as subject to funding. The Year 2 Annual Progress Report will be published in the near future.

The Year 3 Action Plan covering 2024/25 recognises the funding challenges associated with delivery of a number of actions. It includes 46 actions, with 7 of these actions subject to securing funding.”