The scope to provide funding for the area referred to by the Deputy is constrained by the recent economic difficulties and the significant reduction in the public finances.
However, funding for this area will continue to be provided by my Department, from within the available resources, via a number of schemes, which will be either directly administered or delivered through local authorities and certain agencies. In general, it is a matter for such agencies to decide how the available funding should be allocated across their range of programmes and over future years, having regard to competing priorities for limited resources.