Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 6 November 2012
660. Deputy Tony McLoughlin asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he will consider under his community programme and in cooperation with the partnership companies across Ireland putting a place a specific short term course for home/family carer's (details supplied). [47262/12]
View answerThis is a matter for my colleague, the Minister for Health, in the first instance.
The key objectives of my Department’s Community Division are to facilitate integrated development at local level and foster vibrant, sustainable and inclusive communities; and to support the Community and Voluntary Sector in its contribution to an active, democratic and pluralist society.
My Department is responsible for a range of programmes to support communities, including the Local and Community Development Programme which tackles poverty and social exclusion in disadvantaged communities; the RAPID Programme (Revitalising Areas through Planning Investment and Development) which tackles the spatial concentration of poverty and social exclusion in designated areas; and the Rural Development Programme 2007-2013 which implements measures to improve the quality of life in rural areas and facilitate the diversification of the rural economy. These Programmes do not specifically deal with health issues, although they have a role in addressing community wellbeing.
Some of these programmes are delivered at a local level by a nationwide network of Local Development Companies (LDCs). The LDCs are independent, not-for-profit, companies with their own boards of management (and memorandum & articles of association). These Companies provide a range of targeted activities dependent on needs identified in their geographic areas of operation. The LDCs also receive funding from other Government Departments and agencies to deliver various programmes and schemes on their behalf. It would be a matter for the Minister for Health, in this instance, to consider engaging with them in relation to the type of short-term course referred to in the question.
