Vol. 1034 No. 2
1. Deputy Claire Kerrane asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development if she will provide an update on the development of a rural proofing mechanism, as outlined in Our Rural Future: Rural Development Policy 2021-2025; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8768/23]
I am asking for an update on the development of a rural proofing mechanism, as promised in Our Rural Future.
Before we begin proceedings, I wish to send my thoughts and prayers to Detective Chief Inspector John Caldwell, the police officer shot in Omagh last night. A decent man, he was volunteering and training young children at sport, as happens in every community, North and South. He was off duty when he was shot down in front of his son. When he was on the ground, he was shot again. I condemn the cowards, as I know everyone in the House does, who carried out this reprehensible and heinous act. I implore anyone who has information to come forward so that the perpetrators face the full rigour of the law.
I thank Deputy Kerrane for her question. Our Rural Future is the most ambitious and transformational policy for rural development in decades. It commits to developing an effective rural proofing model to ensure that all Departments fully consider the effects of significant new proposals on rural communities and better target the particular challenges and opportunities facing them. In order to progress this matter, my officials commissioned a report on rural proofing, which is now available on my Department's website. The report sets out the policy context for rural proofing and examines the experience of implementing various approaches to rural proofing in a number of other countries. The international evidence is clear, in that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to rural proofing that can be quickly and successfully implemented.
In light of this, my Department has commenced engagement on a pilot basis with key Departments to identify the best approach in the Irish context. Last year, my officials engaged directly with all relevant Departments as regards rural proofing as part of their ongoing discussions on the implementation of Our Rural Future. They have since engaged in greater detail with colleagues in the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media on the development of the new sustainable tourism policy. Similarly, work is under way on the development of the new national hubs strategy, with the incorporation of the rural perspective a key part of its development.
It is good that progress is being made. It needs to happen as quickly as possible. Every time I raise the need for rural proofing, the prime example I give of its necessity is the west and north-west region. Further data from the Central Statistics Office, CSO, show that the gap in disposable income between the region and the State average is widening and is now €3,973. Ireland has worsened to the point where we now have a medium-sized regional inequality in line with Greece, Portugal and Croatia. This is a serious issue. The Northern and Western Regional Assembly has stated that we need a sizable regional stimulus package for the region's economy. This needs to come hand in hand with a rural proofing mechanism.
We need to turn the tide for the west and north west. The region is regressing rapidly. The mechanism will play a part in addressing the issue, but we also need to examine the region itself.
The development of a rural proofing model is a key commitment in Our Rural Future. In conjunction with other Departments, the work on it is progressing well. We have identified the areas we want to focus on as part of a pilot, including sustainable tourism, which has a significant impact on rural economies. We have also launched the national outdoor recreational strategy, which will have major economic benefits. One need only consider the benefits of the Limerick greenway and the mountain biking trail in Kinnitty. The national planning framework is another major influence on balanced regional development, rural housing etc.
I launched Connected Hubs, through which there are 300 remote working hubs nationwide. We are working a great deal with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Enterprise Ireland and the Industrial Development Agency, IDA, on promoting the hubs as landing spaces for multinationals. There is a great example of this in my area of Cavan - PublicRelay is a multinational that rented an entire floor in Cavan's digital hub and is employing 25 staff.
A great deal of work is going on in this space.
That is key. We need to see high-value jobs and the closing of the growing gap in average disposable incomes between the west and north-west region and the rest of the State. We need to see what the Northern and Western Regional Assembly has called for repeatedly, namely, positive discrimination. We need to see major investment in infrastructure in the west and north west if we are to turn the situation around. The region has already been downgraded not once, but twice. It is now a lagging region, which is serious and should set alarm bells ringing. The rural proofing mechanism needs to be in place, but it is also important that we meet the assembly's request for major investment in the west and north west.
I do not have all of the figures to hand, but there has been unprecedented investment in the north and west. Like the Deputy, I am familiar with the region, given that we both live there.
We have worked with Fáilte Ireland and the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media. For example, there is a good remote working hub called the Spool Factory in Boyle, County Roscommon. I have spoken to its management a few times. People who are coming home to Ireland on holidays are able to stay for much longer because they can use its remote working facilities. We need to wrap initiatives like this up as part of our offering to get more people back into rural Ireland. It has been successful in Boyle, and I would like to see it replicated in other areas.
There has been a great deal of investment. I want to see that continue. This year, there is a strong budget line for all of the programmes. I hope to open the calls for them in the next few months.
2. Deputy Noel Grealish asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development when the scheme for funding new community centres will be open for applications, given that the scheme has now been announced; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9206/23]
Now that a scheme to fund new community centres has been announced, will the Minister outline when it will open for applications?
I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. Community centres are the cornerstone of community life in towns, villages and parishes across the country. Since my appointment, I have placed a key focus on the development of these important facilities. In 2022, I launched the new community centres investment fund, with grants of up to €300,000 available for the upgrade and renovation of existing community centres. The types of work that are eligible for funding include upgrades to kitchen and toilet facilities, energy retrofitting, including the provision of new windows, doors and heating systems, works to improve disability access, and other essential maintenance work such as fire safety improvements, repair to roofs and floors etc.
There was significant demand for the scheme, with more than 1,000 applications received. All applications were subject to a competitive assessment, following which I was pleased to announce €45.5 million in funding for 858 successful projects.
In addition to upgrading existing centres, I am aware that there are several areas which would love to have new facilities for their communities to enjoy. I am fully committed to doing all I can to support them. The Deputy has raised this matter with me on several occasions. In this regard, I was delighted to secure €21 million in budget 2023 for a new round of the community centre investment fund which will be targeted specifically at new-build community centres. I am pleased to inform the Deputy that details of the 2023 scheme are currently being developed. I hope to issue a call for applications in March.
I thank the Minister for her reply. As she stated, there are many communities in cities, towns and villages throughout Ireland that do not have a community centre or centralised location in which to gather and meet. I very much welcome the introduction of a new scheme that will enable communities across the country to build and refurbish community centres.
As I stated previously in the House, Newcastle in Galway city is an area with no community facilities. It is home to almost 6,000 residents. A committee got together under the chairmanship of Seamus Davey and raised more than €200,000. It acquired a site and secured planning permission for a much-needed centre for the area. It has the unanimous support of all public representatives. This is an excellent proposal to provide facilities for this area of Galway city. I hope the Newcastle project will be successful in its application to secure funding under the new scheme the Minister will be announcing shortly and opening in March.
The project in Newcastle has been brought to my attention by the Deputy. I have met him and his Oireachtas colleagues to discuss the matter. I fully understand and appreciate the need to support new communities. We need these facilities because communities are very much at the heart of areas. It is important that they have community centres in which they can meet, engage in sporting activities and so on.
We are targeting areas of population growth and will be looking for shovel-ready projects. Those applying to the scheme will need to have planning permission in place. I am not going to allocate money and then wait two years for planning permission to be obtained. That is not where we want to be. We need to have planning in place, as well as matched funding. I am looking for shovel-ready projects.
I thank the Minister for her support. She has met me and other Oireachtas Members since we first raised this issue with her. I acknowledge the support of Oireachtas colleagues in Galway for the project.
I very much welcome the introduction of this much-needed scheme that will unite communities and keep them active. Community centres are often the backbone of communities but, unfortunately, there are areas where no community facilities exist. Newcastle in Galway city is one such area. Of the residents of the area, 60% are retired. They have absolutely no facilities, either community, commercial or otherwise. As the Minister noted, the Newcastle Combined Community Association has advanced plans. The project is shovel ready and set to proceed once funding is secured. I look forward to welcoming the Minister to Galway to turn the sod on this much-needed facility in Newcastle if funding can be approved.
I thank the Deputy. As I stated, I met the Oireachtas Members to discuss the issue. The project in Newcastle seems to tick a lot of boxes but it has to go through a competitive assessment process. I am sure there will be plenty of demand for this fund of €21 million. As we all know, it costs a lot of money to build a community centre. It will be competitive. I knew there was an interest in community centres but €75 million in applications came in for the previous scheme. It was unbelievable. Helping communities is the right thing for us to do. There are volunteers out there who are trying to raise money by shaking buckets and holding all sorts of events. We want to help them. I wish Newcastle well. I will be launching the scheme in March. The most important thing is for the group in Newcastle and groups in other areas to get their applications in, but I want applications in respect of projects that are shovel ready.
3. Deputy Paul Donnelly asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development the steps being taken to deal with the retention of staff in community development projects in view of the fact that large numbers of staff are leaving to fill roles in the HSE and in local authority-run projects; and if there is a plan to introduce pay parity to encourage more people to join the sector. [9207/23]
What steps are being taken to deal with the retention of staff in community development projects in view of the large number of staff who are leaving to take up roles with the HSE and local authorities? Is there a plan to introduce pay parity to encourage more people to join the sector and, importantly, to retain those currently working in the community?
Sustainable, Inclusive and Empowered Communities, the Government's five-year strategy to support the community and voluntary sector, was published in 2019. It is a whole-of-government strategy led by my Department and implemented collaboratively with the sector by means of the cross-sectoral group on local and community development. The strategy is important in seeking to strengthen the community development, local development and community and voluntary sectors generally. It reaffirms the Government's commitment to supporting the sector while also recognising the reality of finite resources and the need to ensure that available resources are focused on providing effective services.
The strategy includes a commitment to develop a sustainable funding model to support the community and voluntary sector. Specific actions included in the strategy are the promotion of multi-annual funding approaches by Departments and agencies, appropriate cost recovery models to cover the costs of compliance, support for autonomous community and local development organisations and sustainable funding models to support community and social enterprises.
My Department is aware of the challenges facing organisations in the local and community development sectors when it comes to the recruitment and retention of staff. Community and voluntary organisations are funded by a wide range of Departments and agencies through different funding schemes and programmes. Although my Department provides funding to some community and voluntary organisations, there is no national pay agreement for the community and voluntary sector as a whole. The Department of Rural and Community Development does not have a mandate to set pay rates for what is a wide array of diverse and independent organisations, most of which get funding directly from other Departments.
That is part of the problem. There is no one Minister with an overarching role in respect of community development. Anywhere we go, we hear about the deep concern regarding job recruitment and retention. The simple fact, however, is that funding provided for salaries in the community development sector simply do not match what the State, through local authorities and the HSE, is offering. According to a report, a community organisation seeking funding to retain a highly skilled worker found that doing so was not worth the effort because it could not match the €15,000 gap in what was being offered. Another report states that the salary gap between the amount community development projects have been funded for community workers and what the State is offering is between 12% and 14%. That is unsustainable for projects. There are reports that there are approximately 1,000 unfulfilled community sector jobs at the moment. If this is not sorted out and pay parity is not achieved, there will be no community development organisations.
When we refer to community and voluntary organisations, we are referring to a variety of groups that get some, if not all, of their funding from different Departments. That is what makes it difficult from our point of view. No one Department can offer any kind of overarching guarantee.
We have been working to improve conditions for the programmes over which we have direct control. As the Deputy probably knows, the recast community services programme has seen increases to the wage contribution we make. We are implementing a lot of reforms and restructuring of other programmes to improve the situation there. We will be supporting the national support structures for public participation networks, PPNs. PPN support workers got a salary increase this year. I have introduced several new grassroots community development programmes in the past couple of years and conditions there are in a different arena.
I take the Deputy’s point. I, too, have heard anecdotes on the matter from local development companies on the ground. It would be good to get a handle on the data and hard facts in terms of the flows of people.
The facts are there. It is clear that the funding gap is approximately 12% to 14%, depending on which project is involved. There are section 10s, sections 56s and section 39s, in addition to programmes that are directly funded by the Department. This funding is critical for community development because it is a very specific sector and role that covers a plethora of different services, projects and needs within communities. The Minister of State sits at the Cabinet table. I ask him to raise at Cabinet the crisis in staff retention and recruitment in the community sector. The Government should look at a strategy, possibly a national pay agreement, or agree to look at what we and the Government can do regarding a national wage agreement for community development workers that will cover all such workers, no matter what section or area they work in.
I will mention two things that might be useful in this space. For a couple of years, we have funded an all-Ireland standards body on community development work. That body is grappling with the issue I mentioned, namely, different understandings of community work. Community development is a very particular kind of work and that body is trying to get a little consistency across the board in that regard.
I will mention another important document. Last year, the Cabinet - and the Government in its entirety - approved a values and principles document on how the Government has agreed to engage with the community and voluntary sector as a whole. Every Department has signed up to that. I bring it up at every opportunity because it is quite a significant document. It did not get loads of publicity but every Department has signed up to it. It has six key principles: respect, subsidiarity, harmonisation, value for money, implementation and collaboration. If the spirt of that values and principles document was brought out a little more, it might help to address the issue the Deputy raised.
5. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development further to Parliamentary Question No. 401 of 19 January 2023, the date on which the new policy for the islands will be published; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9410/23]
Ar ais linn arís go dtí polasaí na n-oileán. Cá bhfuil sé? Táimid ag fanacht ó 2019 i leith. Cuireadh grúpa oibre tras-rannach le chéile i 2019; táimid anois i 2023. Cá bhfuil an polasaí? Thug an Aire geallúintí dom. The Minister gave promises. I know her heart is in this. She has shown a commitment to the islands and has visited them. Where is the policy for the islands? It is the most basic request to have a policy for the islands, followed by a work programme and legislation.
Ar ais linn arís. As the Deputy will be aware, the Government is committed to publishing an islands policy in line with the programme for Government commitment and the commitments made in Our Rural Future. I received a draft copy of the policy before Christmas. While it is clear that a lot of work has been done in getting the draft policy to this point, I am of the view that more work is needed to firm up the text and, more importantly, the actions. I have committed to publishing an action plan along with the policy, as I did with the rural development policy, Our Rural Future. We can see the difference that is making throughout the country in transforming our rural communities, towns and villages. I want to make sure we do the same thing for our islands.
I thank the Minister. I welcome her dedication and the fact that she wants an action plan. She will forgive my cynicism and, more importantly, that of the islanders who have waited a long time. We have had interdepartmental reports previously. That was what led me to table a motion in respect of this matter before the Dáil, which was accepted by a majority in 2019. It is very serious that the Minister is not happy with what she has been given. When the Minister said it was not strong enough, is she referring to the actual plan or the action plan, or is it the policy she is not happy with? Perhaps she will clarify that. Will she clarify what she is unhappy with? Is the plan not specific enough?
As it happens, by default I saw a programme last night, which is most unusual for me, on TG4 about a return to the islands. It included Arranmore in County Donegal and Aran off the coast of Galway. Despite all the obstacles the islands face, they are still attracting people back. We want Government policy, action and legislation to underpin that.
I thank the Deputy. In fairness, she has asked me about this islands policy a great deal. There has been extensive consultation on it. We have the policy. Policy is fine but we need the actions. I want to hold other Departments to account. I do not want fancy, flowery language. I want time-bound actions so that when Departments state they will do something, they will do it. From my experience, the only way to keep other Departments toes to the fire is to get it down in writing. I will meet with Ministers in the various Departments; that is my plan. My officials have met with officials from other Departments. I just want to make sure we tie them down. When they say they will do it, I want to know when they will do it. We want a delivery date on it.
In fairness, the Deputy will know that Our Rural Future is a policy that includes actions to be taken every year. It is working, and I am holding Departments to account. As the Deputy said, I have shown my commitment to the islands. I was the first Minister for Social Protection, for many years, to increase the islands allowance in my first budget in the Department. There was a long-running issue in County Donegal regarding the roads on the islands, which were in terrible repair. I worked with the island communities and Donegal County Council, and the roads on some of the islands there have been transformed. If the Deputy gets a chance she should travel to the lighthouse on Arranmore, and ask the community the difference that has made to them.
The problem, and the reason I tabled the motion, as did people before me, is the crisis in respect of the islands' population. Of the 30 islands, eight are in Gaeltacht areas and they contain 70% of the population. On so many levels, including Irish language sustainability, this is about the sustainability of the islands, whether their populations speak Irish or English. That is why we put the focus of the Government on this. It has taken many years.
Can the Minister not publish the policy? If she cannot publish it now because she is waiting for the action plan, will she give us a date for that? It is very worrying to hear the phrase "will be finalised as soon as possible" being used by the Minister. I have a library of answers on this matter and that is the weakest one, apart from the fact the Minister said she is not happy, which is a clear message, and wants stronger action. I welcome that but we have not even got to the point of underpinning the policy with legislation, which has been done in Scotland, where its islands population has increased because it has a policy, an action plan and legislation.
I have the policy but I need the actions. A number of Departments are critical in this regard. We all know them. I met representatives from Comhdháil Oileáin na hÉireann. There are issues around planning, sewerage, water, education and health. We need more nurses in particular and we need more GPs, primary care services and services for older people. There are many issues. I have been doing a lot through my Department. On Clare Island, for example, we are trialling a new initiative in areas such as e-health. We are doing other things on other islands. I am trying to do the best I can in my Department. As part of this new policy, I want other Ministers to do the same. I want to use this policy to hold other Departments to account for their actions on the islands, whether these relate to housing, education or health services. It has to be a whole-of-government policy.
This will be the first such policy in 26 years.
The Deputy asked me for a timeline. I hope to have this well done in quarter 2 or earlier. I give her my word on this. This is a priority for me. I want it delivered within, let us say, the next two months.
4. Deputy Michael Collins asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development the amount of funding that has been allocated to Cork South-West since the rural regeneration and redevelopment fund grant aid commenced; where it has been allocated; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9426/23]
Rural regeneration funding has been with us for the past number of years. The question is how much has been allocated from the rural regeneration fund to the constituency of Cork South-West and where that money has been allocated since the fund was set up.
I thank Deputy Collins for raising this question.
The rural regeneration and development fund, RRDF, provides funding for the development and construction of capital projects in towns and villages and rural areas across Ireland. To date, 215 projects have been approved for funding of €395 million for projects costing €542 million across the country. The fund is central to achieving the objectives and key deliverables of Our Rural Future, the Government's five-year policy for rural Ireland. The projects supported by the fund assist in the regeneration of rural towns and villages by addressing vacancy and dereliction and positioning them for further growth through regeneration and town centre renewal. The fund also invests in strategic projects that contribute to further economic development in rural areas.
Three projects located in south-west Cork have been allocated RRDF funding of €9.6 million for projects worth €22.7 million. The projects are the Kinsale library project, for which Cork County Council was awarded €2.15 million under the first call for category 1 applications in 2018, and two projects for which I awarded funding under the fourth call for category 1 applications late last year. Those are the Bandon town centre renewal and regeneration project, for which Cork County Council was awarded €5.5 million, and the Neart enterprise, creative and digital hub on Sherkin Island, for which Comhar na nOileán was awarded over €1.9 million. The projects allocated funding in south-west Cork are large-scale capital projects that will have a lasting impact and be truly transformational for the communities there.
I thank the Minister for her reply. Obviously, funding to any community is important, and I would certainly welcome any moneys that have gone to the Kinsale library project, Bandon town centre or Sherkin Island. The Minister said, however, that there are 215 projects in total, and I think this scheme has been up and running for about five years. It is incredible, to say the least, that Cork South-West has ended up with only three projects across the line in that much time. There is a project on Dursey Island that has been pulled. There is a project in the Schull harbour area in respect of which, prior to Deputy Humphreys becoming Minister, the committee involved was brought up here and congratulated that it had got the money. A week later, when the money was announced, it had slipped away to some other constituency. A project such as the Schull harbour one would have been of huge benefit to the whole of the Mizen Peninsula. These are areas that find it difficult to survive in winter. There needs to be a bigger focus on communities like Cork South-West for this funding.
I hope to go back to Kinsale shortly to open that new library. I think the project is well on. Bandon has got funding - I think €5 million - for the town centre regeneration. I was in Bandon earlier in the year and met the Deputy's brother Danny down there. He is the cathaoirleach of Cork County Council. We had a great day there. There is a fabulous park in Bandon that we visited. That park was funded through the LEADER programme. I had a good conversation with the local community there. I talked to businesspeople. I think the €5 million for Bandon will make a huge difference in the town, and I wish the people there well with their work. They highlighted the issue of dereliction. That funding should be able to assist them in many different ways to develop the centre of the town. When I was there I went to the farmers' market as well. I also visited the local producers' co-op, which sells its products there. I know the money they have got will help them to improve their town. As I said, three applications came in and they were successful. My Department has to get the applications before we can approve the funding. We have been engaging with Cork County Council. If the Deputy looks overall through the whole of Cork, he will see that a lot of funding has been provided under all the different funding streams of my Department, whether it is the town and village scheme, the outdoor recreation scheme or the streetscape enhancement scheme. There is a lot of funding out there, and I encourage people to put in their applications.
The Minister may be aware of the All-Island Research Observatory, AIRO, report. I hope Cork County Council made her aware of it when she was in west Cork recently. It is an independent report drawn up by the council, which has proved that County Cork has seen the lowest amount of funding over the past 30 to 40 years. County Cork is 40 to 50 years behind on funding in respect of roads, rural regeneration, the town and village scheme and the local improvement scheme, LIS. I accept that a lot of this is before the Minister's time, but that was an independent report and I have asked the previous Taoiseach to acknowledge the report. I will ask the new Taoiseach to acknowledge it. It is a shocking indictment of successive governments turning their backs on the rural community.
The Minister said she was in west Cork recently. So was Deputy Varadkar, when he was Tánaiste, about six months ago. He stood in the area of the Schull harbour project, which was perfectly suited to rural regeneration funds. He stood there almost tongue-in-cheek and, at the same time, he was the Taoiseach in the Government that refused to give the people involved the money, even though they ticked all the boxes and, as I said, were brought up here, got a pat on the back, were told they would get the money by three Ministers and had their picture taken. Pictures went up on social media all right, but they never got a brown cent.
We need a better focus on places like west Cork and rural Ireland, especially with rural regeneration funds, if we are to try to get communities to survive during the winter period, as they may be able to do during the summer.
I am looking here at the town and village renewal scheme funding alone, and west Cork has not been doing too badly. I look at Bantry, which got €216,000 on top of RRDF funding. Dunmanway got €96,000. Glengarriff got €100,000 for installing a new riverside walk. I was out on the Beara Peninsula, where they are doing wonderful work on the Beara walk and the equestrian trail. There are a lot of opportunities, but the applications have to be submitted. If they are not, my Department cannot give the projects the money. I will be going back to Cork, no doubt. I was in Banteer. I know that is not in the Deputy's constituency but, my goodness, what a wonderful day we had there. We have been able to support wonderful facilities there, not only through LEADER but also through other funding that has been provided. It is a credit to what they have done as a community there. They got their application in and got the funding, and it is a state-of-the-art facility. The Deputy's brother was there too so he will be able to give him a good briefing on what they were able to do.
I encourage communities to come together and work with their local authorities and get these applications in. That is what this Department is about. It is about supporting them. However, applications have to stack up. People might have good ideas but they have to have plans and have to make sure the project is sustainable and will deliver for the people on the ground. That is important because all applications are independently assessed when they come into my Department and some of them do not cut the mustard. For those that do not, I suggest going back to the drawing board, having another look, engaging with the Department, seeing where they fell down and getting the application in for the next time. The good news is that the money is still there.
