Vol. 444 No. 6
46 Mr. Gilmore asked the Minister for Enterprise and Employment the arrangements that have been made to provide funding for emigrant advice and counselling services; the plans, if any, he has to provide additional funding for this valuable service for emigrants; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
102 Mr. Barrett asked the Minister for Enterprise and Employment if he will provide funding to the emigrant advice and counselling service to assist it in the service it is providing.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 46 and 102 together.
My Department allocates assistance to voluntary organisations in Britain which provide advisory and welfare services for Irish emigrants there. The allocation of this assistance is based on the recommendations of DÍON — the advisory committee on the welfare of Irish emigrants in Britain.
The DÍON Committee was set up, by the then Minister for Labour in 1984 to advise and report on emigrant welfare services in Britain. It makes recommendations on the provision of financial assistance to organizations to employ professional workers to assist with the welfare problems of Irish emigrants there. In 1993 an amount of £500,000 was provided.
For some years now, the grants made on the advice of DÍON have been confined to British-based organisations. I have accepted the recommendation of the DÍON Committee that the moneys available were more pressingly needed by the voluntary agencies in Britain and I do not propose providing further grant aid for voluntary agencies operating in Ireland.
FÁS has the statutory duty to provide pre-departure advice to persons intending to live and work abroad. FÁS, through its national network of offices, is in the best position to provide such advice and to outline the options which are available.
