Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 13 October 2022
18. Deputy Seán Canney asked the Minister for Social Protection if she intends to increase the number of participants on rural social schemes to meet the demand for the services delivered by the rural social schemes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [44769/22]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, the Rural Development Policy 2021-2025 - Our Rural Future, was published in 2021; and represents a new milestone in the approach to rural development in Ireland. The Policy is supported by 150 commitments across Government, which will address the challenges facing communities and deliver new opportunities for people living in rural areas.
The policy will help rural Ireland to recover from the impacts of Covid-19, enable long-term development of rural areas, and create more resilient rural economies and communities for the future. It is an ambitious five year whole of Government policy for the future development of rural Ireland.
The Rural Social Scheme (RSS) is an income support scheme for farmers and fishers who are in receipt of specified social welfare payments, and who are underemployed in their primary occupation. The scheme offers participants the opportunity to gain valuable work experience, while providing services to local communities. To qualify for RSS, a person must be actively farming or fishing, and satisfy the means test assessment required to qualify for the Farm Assist (FA) payment.
During 2017 and 2018 the number of places available on RSS was increased by 750, bringing the total number of places available up to 3,350. As at the end of September 2022, there were 2,869 participants availing of RSS with some 481 RSS places still available. Intreo offices continue to promote RSS - but it is primarily a demand led scheme. Current participation rates indicate that the number of available places is sufficient to meet current demand for places on the scheme.
Last June, Minister Humphreys and I introduced a series of reforms to support CE and RSS schemes and participants. These included removing the six year time limit for participants on RSS, which will benefit 920 participants and will ensure that schemes can retain current participants who are delivering important services in rural communities.
My Department will continue to monitor RSS and the numbers of participants availing of this valuable income support programme, including qualifying criteria. Should the demand for RSS places exceed the number of places available during the course of the Rural Development Plan, then my officials will seek to raise the matter with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to consider any additional funding required to further expand the RSS and build on the good work.
My Department continues to review all aspects of its income and employment support programmes to ensure their most effective delivery and the best outcomes for both participants and communities.
We will be starting a process before the end of the year on a wider review of RSS and part of that will be exploring opportunities to grow the scheme.
