Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 13 May 1997

Vol. 479 No. 2

Written Answers. - Grant Aid.

Helen Keogh

Question:

269 Ms Keogh asked the Minister for Social Welfare the amounts and purpose of any funding or grant allocations made by his Department or by bodies under the aegis of his Department to organisations (details supplied) in each of the years from 1995 to date in 1997. [12845/97]

Minister for Social Welfare (Proinsias De Rossa)

The Combat Poverty Agency is a statutory agency established under the Combat Poverty Agency Act, 1986. Details of its annual budgets are provided in the published Estimates each year. In addition, the accounts and annual report of the agency are laid before both Houses of the Oireachtas. The agency is funded on a grant-in-aid basis and received Exchequer funding in each of the years 1995 to 1997 as follows: 1995, £1.920 million; 1996, £2.061 million; and 1997, £2.257 million.

In addition, the agency receives funding under various EU initiatives and generates a small amount of income through publications etc. The agency received funding of £536,183 in 1996 under the EU Programme for Peace and Reconciliation for cross-Border community development initiatives. My Department also funds the National Social Service Board to the extent of £1,221,000 in 1995 — from June 1995 — £2,592,000 in 1996 and £2,970,000 in 1997. In addition, grants were made to the following organisations in 1995 and 1996 — grants for 1997 are under consideration—

ICTU Centres for the Unemployed

1995: £60,000

1996: £60,000

Coolock Community Law Centre

1995: £100,000

1996: £120,000

We do not have funding responsibility for either the National Youth Council or the National Youth Federation.

We do not have recent applications for funding from CORI or from the Community Platform. Core funding of the organisations known as the national networks comes within the remit of the Combat Poverty Agency. Information on the funding by the Combat Poverty Agency of these organisations is being compiled and will be forwarded tomorrow.

The following schedule gives details in respect of funding by my Department of the organisations referred to by the Deputy for the years 1995 and 1996. Applications for funding under my Department's grant schemes for 1997 are currently being processed.

Details of all grants paid under the various Department of Social Welfare schemes in 1995, 1996 and in prevous years, are available in the Oireachtas Library.

Schedule

Organisation	Year	£	Purpose
Forum for People with Disabilities	1996	400	international conf.
ICA	1995	83,250	to 257 Guilds	for a range of activities
	1996	78,085	to 288 Guilds
INOU	1995	60,000	welfare rights
	1996	123,269	premises & welfare rights
Irish Travellers Movement	1995	2,300	photocopier
	1996	2,500	office equipment
National Women's Council	1996	5,000	towards the cost of a particular programme
Pavee Point	1995	52,000	Community
	1996	51,688	Development
	1997	13,250	Programme