asked the Minister for Labour if he has any plans to increase the aid offered by his Department for emigrant advisory services.
Ceisteanna — Questions. Oral Answers. - Emigrant Advisory Services.
8.
Grants from funds available to my Department for assisting voluntary organisations in Britain which provide welfare services for Irish emigrants are paid on the advice of DÍON, the London based committee which advises me on emigrant welfare matters generally. The amount allocated for grant assistance was doubled from £250,000 in 1988 to £500,000 in 1989.
I will shortly be advised by DÍON about the present situation vis-à-vis the needs of emigrants to Britain. The amount of grant assistance in 1990 will be considered in the context of the needs in this area and the global budgetary situation.
In view of the fact that there is a saving to the Exchequer in the region of £20 million by reason of non-payment of social welfare entitlements to people who, if they did not emigrate, would be in receipt of such, would the Minister not give consideration to increasing the amount by £0.5 million, bearing in mind that what they are offering these young people is nothing more than fugitive status in another country? There is a need for better advice to people who emigrate. Many of them are sleeping rough in London. They are treated like fugitives in the US and Australia and are under constant threat of being deported. All we can do is offer £0.5 million which is totally inadequate.
On the first question, my remit covers Great Britain; I am not responsible for the other areas which are under the Department of Foreign Affairs. The DÍON grants go primarily to organisations employing professional workers operating frontline emergency services for emigrants arriving without accommodation and/or employment. They involve themselves in information projects, examining the needs of disadvantaged emigrants and ventures which link voluntary bodies with the local authorities to try to get money from the various statutory agencies in Britain. During my period in office the funds have gone up substantially but I keep in very close touch with DÍON and the money we receive is usefully employed by the various emigrant organisations.
Does the Minister think it is adequate?
During the last few years I have followed the budget that DÍON have requested. That does not include work done by FÁS and some of the Irish centres or the very detailed programme done within the educational system here at home in conjunction with FÁS in educating people who are ill-prepared and advising them not to go abroad in the first place.
Does the Minister not accept that it is one of the myths of modern Irish society that all of our young people forced to emigrate are well educated and that in fact a great many of them are ill-equipped to fend for themselves? Having regard to the scale of the problem which is worse than at any time since the low point of the mid-fifties, does the Minister agree that the provision of £500,000 is a pittance and completely inadequate in terms of the circumstances that these young people find themselves in as a result of our inability to provide them with work at home?
The real solution is to try to provide work at home. The DÍON grants are not aimed at resolving all the problems and difficulties but to give money to professional social workers to assist these people. Since 1986 my predecessor and I have started programmes using the statutory agencies, including the education system, FÁS and others, to advise against ill-prepared emigration. There has been a decrease in the number of people calling to the centres. There is no doubt that there are hardship cases but the number is not great. I have been to the centres and to the agencies on many occasions and I accept that problems exist but the substantial increase in the financial assistance to them has been of great help. I should like to remind the House that we will continue to keep this matter under review.