Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 12 July 2023
177. Deputy Mattie McGrath asked the Minister for Justice further to Parliamentary Question No. 1053 of 21 March 2023, the reason some groups have not yet received their rebate from Muintir na Tíre; the groups that have not received a rebate, by county, under the headings (details supplied) together with her explanation regarding the non-payment. [34535/23]
View answerAs the Deputy may be aware, my Department provides funding to Muintir na Tíre to cover the costs incurred by communities in administering the Text Alert Scheme. The Scheme is administered on a refund basis whereby communities submit their annual costs to Muintir na Tíre and a maximum refund of up to €450 is provided to the community. This funding is provided for in the Department of Justice’s Crime Prevention Budget.The Department made the following payments to Muintir na Tíre:
• 2021 €124,060.35
• 2020 €196,362.80
• 2019 €123,911.81
I can confirm to the Deputy that the last request for payment the Department received from Muintir na Tíre was on 12 December 2022, which was for the 2021 Text Rebate claim, and this was sent for payment on 13 December 2022. The Department is awaiting the 2022 rebate request.Officials within my Department have engaged with Muintir na Tíre on their review of the Text Alert Scheme with a view to delivering more cost effective options, such as the use of apps, for future versions of the Scheme.
