Tom Enright
Question:78 Mr. Enright asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the future plans she has for community employment and social economy schemes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26742/00]
Written Answers. - Community Employment Schemes.
Billy Timmins
Question:111 Mr. Timmins asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the future plans for community employment schemes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26739/00]
Willie Penrose
Question:132 Mr. Penrose asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of persons currently employed on community employment schemes; the projected numbers for 2001; the progress made to date in 2000 by the standing committee on the labour market in its consideration of the scheme and the possibility of mainstreaming services now employed by community employment schemes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26577/00]
Paul Bradford
Question:156 Mr. Bradford asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if FÁS schemes will continue to provide school caretaker and secretarial positions. [26809/00]
Gerry Reynolds
Question:167 Mr. G. Reynolds asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the current status of the review of the community employment schemes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26664/00]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 78, 111, 132, 156 and 167 together.
Community employment is an active labour market programme whose primary role is to progress participants to jobs in the open labour market. The programme was restructured during 1999 to take account of the tightening labour market and to refocus the programme on older persons and those most removed from the labour market. The principal feature of the restructuring was the introduction of a phased reduction in the number of participants on CE to 28,000 by 2003, through transferring the resources for 5,000 places to the social economy programme and by reducing the numbers of places otherwise on the CE by 4,500 from the 1999 average provision of 37,500. There are currently 33,412 participants on the programme, which has a target average participation in the region of 33,000 for 2001.
My Department is currently finalising discussions with the Department of Education and Science aimed at transferring CE funding on schools schemes amounting to £46 million to that Department, based on a FÁS audit of CE essential services in November 1999. This would provide an increase in funding for schools over and above the additional resources already allocated by the Department of Education and Science for these purposes over the past year. The precise nature of the scheme to be implemented is at an advanced stage of consideration by the Department of Education and Science.
Following the proposed mainstreaming of CE schools services and the associated funding, and allowing for an appropriate transition period, CE services to schools will be discontinued. Similar discussions are also under way with the Department of Health and Children on determining the potential to transfer a total of approximately £15 million CE spending on services to persons with disabilities. To ensure that they are not adversely affected by the restructuring of the programme, these services for persons with disabilities are classified as a priority by FÁS. Consequently, they are currently exempt from the phased reductions which have been imposed on other categories of CE projects.
On completing the discussions with the relevant Government Departments, proposals on the mainstreaming of CE services in schools and for persons with disabilities will be discussed with the social partners within weeks under the framework of the PPF Standing Committee on the Labour Market.
The social economy programme was formally launched on 18 September 2000. The key aims of the social economy programme are to support the regeneration and quality of life of local disadvantaged areas and to maximise employment opportunities for long-term unemployed and other disadvantaged persons.
The programme will support the development and operation of social economy enterprises that provide social services and employment opportunities in and for disadvantaged communities. Financial grants and technical supports are provided for the development of social economy businesses for up to three years. This includes grant support for the development of a business plan.
The national development plan provides for expenditure of £213 million on the social economy programme over the period 2000-06. It is expected that expenditure in 2001 will be £17 million and it is forecast to rise to £41 million per annum as the demand for the programme increases.