Vol. 569 No. 5
98 Ms O. Mitchell asked the Minister for Health and Children if his attention has been drawn to the impact of the failure to replace community employment schemes with mainstream permanent jobs in the health sector; and the measures he intends to take to obviate the human misery that this is causing. [18161/03]
Sufficient funding is not available in 2003 for the mainstreaming of community employment, CE, scheme participants engaged in the delivery of health and personal social services. I am aware that the three year cap on participation in CE schemes is affecting the delivery of health and social services by some sponsor agencies and, in the absence of the additional funding required this year for mainstreaming, my Department has been in contact with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment with a view to examining the possibility of lifting the three year cap on participants involved in health related projects.
