Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 24 October 2019
25. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development if he will report on the Dublin community initiatives he has visited; if he has liaised with his colleague the Minister for Justice and Equality on the need for increased resources for community development in areas of Dublin 13 and 17; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43047/19]
View answerMy Department was established in 2017 to promote development in both rural and urban communities. This is achieved through both targeted funding supports for communities and policies to support them in their important work.
In August this year at the Fatima Resource Centre in Dublin I launched "Sustainable, Inclusive and Empowered Communities: a five-year strategy to support the community and voluntary sector in Ireland".
This Government Strategy was development by my Department with those in the community and voluntary sector. It details actions which will support communities and their representative organisations to deliver positive outcomes within their local areas. These actions include my Department working with other government colleagues and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to scope and develop a sustainable funding model for the community and voluntary sector.
I have seen first-hand the wide-ranging excellent work which is being undertaken in local communities to make lives better for those who live there. I am delighted to have had many opportunities to visit community initiatives in Dublin that have received supports from the Department.
In July I was pleased to launch Ireland’s first National Policy on Social Enterprise at Speedpak in Coolock in Dublin 17. Speedpak, which received €30,000 Dormant Accounts funding from my Department in 2017 and over €290,000 under my Department's Community Services Programme during 2018 and 2019, has employed and trained over 1,150 people since it was founded in the 1990s, with significant positive impacts for individuals and families in the community.
In October 2018, I visited the Lourdes Day Care Facility in Seán Mac Dermott Street to view some of the important programmes being funded by my Department through the Dublin North East Inner City Initiative (NEIC).
I have also visited a number of libraries in Dublin city, including Charleville Mall, Kevin Street and Pearse Street Libraries, all of which have benefited from the Libraries Capital Investment Programme and which are great community resources.
I look forward to continuing to support these valuable community initiatives in Dublin and across the country and will continue to advocate for supports for communities across government, including through discussing these issues with my colleague the Minister for Justice and Equality.
