Tuesday, 27 Jun 2017

Written Answers Nos. 315-333

Ministerial Appointments

Ceisteanna (315)

Éamon Ó Cuív

Ceist:

315. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the appointments made to State boards under her auspices in the period 1 May 2017 to 15 June 2017, broken down by appointee name, position and relevant State board, in tabular form; the appointment process for each such appointment; the details of all State boards and agencies under the auspices of her Department in which vacancies remain unfilled to date; and the number in each State board or agency. [29620/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs

I recently made appointments to the Irish Manuscripts Commission. The appointments are being communicated to applicants at present and a statement will issue shortly from my Department giving details of membership. It is also intended to make appointments shortly to the National Archives Advisory Council and the Western Development Commission. In all these cases vacancies are being filled following advertisement on the dedicated website www.stateboards.ie operated by the Public Appointment Service. The following table gives details of current vacancies on State Boards under the aegis of my Department.

State Board	Number of Current Vacancies
Chester Beatty Library	2
Crawford Art Gallery	1
Foras na Gaeilge (An Foras Teanga)*	3*
Heritage Council	1
National Archives	12
Western Development Commission	11

*Foras na Gaeilge is a North/South body and the filling of the 3 current vacancies requires Ministerial nomination in the North for subsequent North/South Ministerial Council approval.

Commemorative Events

Ceisteanna (316)

Éamon Ó Cuív

Ceist:

316. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs her plans to commemorate the anniversary in 2017 of the death of Thomas Ashe; the details of planned events for September 2017; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29772/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs

The 25th September 2017 marks the centenary of the death of Thomas Ashe. His funeral took place on 30 September 1917 in Glasnevin Cemetery and was politically a significant event, with the graveside oration delivered by Michael Collins. My Department has already provided support for a number of local events to commemorate Thomas Ashe and consideration is currently being given as to how the centenary of his death might be appropriately marked later this year.

Capital Expenditure Programme

Ceisteanna (317)

Niall Collins

Ceist:

317. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the details and county location of capital projects announced by her Department in March, April, May and to date in June 2017. [29776/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs

Details of the capital funding allocated to my Department at subhead level are published in the annual Revised Estimates Volume. Through these subheads, my Department administers and delivers a wide range of programmes and measures which are described on my Department’s website at http://www.ahg.gov.ie/.

Details of capital allocations made to projects in recent months are publicly available on a county basis on the News page of my Department’s website.

Departmental Staff Data

Ceisteanna (318, 319)

Mick Wallace

Ceist:

318. Deputy Mick Wallace asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the number of Civil Service clerical officers in full-time employment in her Department as of 31 May 2017 by county, in tabular form. [29843/17]

Mick Wallace

Ceist:

319. Deputy Mick Wallace asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the number of full-time Civil Service clerical officers in her Department who have either retired, resigned or been promoted from 1 January 2015 to 31 May 2017, by county, in tabular form. [29859/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs

I propose to take Questions Nos. 318 and 319 together.

I am advised that there are 110 Clerical Officers in full time employment in my Department as of 31 May 2017. The following table shows the breakdown by county.

County	Total
Dublin	59
Mayo	16
Kerry	14
Galway	11
Wexford	6
Kildare	2
Donegal	1
Westmeath	1
Total	110

The following table outlines the number of full time Clerical Officers in my Department that have either retired, resigned or been promoted from 1 January 2015 to 31 May 2017 by county.

Dublin

Year	Retired	Resigned	Promoted
2015	1	0	2
2016	0	0	3
2017 (to 31 May)	0	0	1

Kerry

Year	Retired	Resigned	Promoted
2015	0	0	0
2016	1	`0	0
2017 (to 31 May)	0	0	0

Galway

Year	Retired	Resigned	Promoted
2015	0	0	0
2016	0	0	1
2017 (to 31 May)	0	0	0

Departmental Staff Data

Ceisteanna (320, 321)

Mick Wallace

Ceist:

320. Deputy Mick Wallace asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the number of full-time Civil Service clerical officer appointments made in her Department from 1 January 2015 to 31 May 2017, inclusive, by county, in tabular form. [29881/17]

Mick Wallace

Ceist:

321. Deputy Mick Wallace asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the number of temporary Civil Service clerical officer appointments made in her Department from 1 January 2015 to 31 May 2017 by county, in tabular form. [29901/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs

I propose to take Questions Nos. 320 and 321 together.

I am advised that 27 full time Clerical Officers were appointed in my Department from 1 January 2015 to 31 May 2017. The following table shows the breakdown by county.

County	Total
Dublin	21
Galway	3
Kerry	1
Wexford	2
Total	27

I am advised further that 16 Temporary Clerical Officers were appointed in my Department from 1 January 2015 to 31 May 2017. The following table shows the breakdown by county .

County	Total
Dublin	8
Wexford	2
Monaghan	2
Kerry	2
Galway	1
Mayo	1
Total	16

Questions Nos. 322 to 325, inclusive, answered with Question No. 307.

Question No. 326 answered with Question No. 309.

Question No. 327 answered with Question No. 310.

Rural Development Policy

Ceisteanna (328)

Peadar Tóibín

Ceist:

328. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs if she will conduct an evaluation outcome assessment of the actions that were contained in the CEDRA report. [30071/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs

The Report of the Commission for the Economic Development of Rural Areas (CEDRA) was published in April 2014 and contained a series of recommendations to Government in relation to rural development, many of which have already been implemented.

The Government's Action Plan for Rural Development, which I launched last January, builds on, and goes further than, the CEDRA report by focusing on both the economic and social development of rural areas. It will act as an overarching structure for a range of Government initiatives which have the potential to benefit rural Ireland.

The Plan contains over 270 specific commitments to be delivered by a range of Government Departments, State agencies and other bodies. It is being overseen by a Monitoring Committee and Progress Reports on the implementation of the actions in the Plan will be published every six months.

Action 86 of the Action Plan commits my Department, in conjunction with relevant partners, to "review the recommendations of the CEDRA Report and the Charter for Rural Ireland and identify how best to progress any recommendations that have not yet been implemented."

This action is due to be completed by the end of September. I can confirm that work on this action is underway and is on schedule to be completed within the required timeframe.

Irish Language

Ceisteanna (329)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy

Ceist:

329. Deputy Marcella Corcoran Kennedy asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the funding allocation to a group (details supplied); her plans to increase the level of funding awarded to the group [30101/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister of State at the Department of Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs

Foras na Gaeilge, an agency of the North South Language Body, is the agency charged with promotion of the Irish language on an all-island basis. In carrying out its legislative mandate, Foras na Gaeilge provides support, advice and financial assistance to many groups who promote the language, including provision of courses and activities to help people improve or learn the language.

Following a decision by the North South Ministerial Council on 10 July 2013, a new era in the development of the Irish language was commenced with the announcement by Foras na Gaeilge, on 17 January 2014, of the lead organisations that would take responsibility for six major areas of work. The group referred to by the Deputy is one of these six lead organisations, charged with raising awareness, language advocacy and advocacy for the language with State authorities.

Decisions regarding grant schemes and funding are, accordingly, operational matters for both the group referred to by the Deputy and Foras na Gaeilge.

CLÁR Programme

Ceisteanna (330)

Martin Heydon

Ceist:

330. Deputy Martin Heydon asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs her plans to review the areas included under the CLÁR programme to include County Kildare which is one of just three counties not designated for CLÁR funding; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30118/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs

The CLÁR programme (Ceantair Laga Árd-Riachtanais) was originally launched in October 2001 to provide for targeted investment in disadvantaged rural areas.

The areas originally selected for inclusion in the CLÁR programme were those which suffered the greatest population decline from 1926 to 1996, with the exception of the Cooley Peninsula which was included on the basis of the serious difficulties caused in that area by Foot and Mouth disease. The average population loss in the original CLÁR regions over the period 1926 to 1996 was 50%.

In 2006, an analysis of the 2002 Census data was carried out by the National Institute for Regional and Spatial Analysis (NIRSA) at NUI Maynooth and the programme was extended to include areas with an average population loss of 35% per county between 1926 and 2002. Parts of five counties were added (Carlow, Kilkenny, Laois, Offaly, Wicklow), increasing the total number of counties covered by the programme at that stage from 18 to 23.

It is my intention to review the CLÁR areas later this year, based on detailed 2016 Census small area data which is expected to be available shortly. However, the criterion of significant rural de-population will continue to be a key factor in determining eligible CLÁR areas.

CLÁR Programme

Ceisteanna (331)

Pearse Doherty

Ceist:

331. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the reasons an application for the CLÁR programme 2017 submitted by a school (details supplied) in County Donegal was not successful; if she will provide information regarding the score awarded to the aforementioned application as per the formal assessment and evaluation of applications; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30138/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs

The 2017 CLÁR programme was launched on 31 March last, with a closing date of 5 May. The programme provides funding for small scale infrastructural projects in disadvantaged rural areas that have experienced significant levels of de-population.

Funding for the 2017 CLÁR programme was available this year under four separate Measures:

Measure 1: Support for School and Community Safety Measures

Measure 2: Play Areas

Measure 3: Targeted Community Infrastructure

Measure 4: First Responder Supports

In total, more than 500 applications were received across the four Measures to the value of €15 million.

Funding to support projects under CLÁR this year was limited and it was not possible to fund all applications. In recent weeks, 230 successful projects were approved for funding, with a total of just under €7 million allocated across the four Measures.

In general, applications were assessed on the basis of their eligibility under the scheme criteria and on the quality of the documentation supporting their proposals, as required in the scheme guidelines. I can confirm that the application in respect of the school referred to by the Deputy was unsuccessful as adequate supporting documentation was not provided.

CLÁR Programme

Ceisteanna (332)

Pat the Cope Gallagher

Ceist:

332. Deputy Pat The Cope Gallagher asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the reason an application for CLÁR funding by a school (details supplied) was unsuccessful under measure one, support for school and community safety measures; if her attention has been drawn to the safety concerns parents and teachers have regarding daily traffic volumes at the school; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30180/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs

The 2017 CLÁR programme was launched on 31 March last, with a closing date of 5 May. The programme provides funding for small scale infrastructural projects in disadvantaged rural areas that have experienced significant levels of de-population.

Funding for the 2017 CLÁR programme was available this year under four separate Measures:

Measure 1: Support for School and Community Safety Measures

Measure 2: Play Areas

Measure 3: Targeted Community Infrastructure

Measure 4: First Responder Supports.

In total, more than 500 applications were received across the four Measures to the value of €15 million.

Funding to support projects under CLÁR this year was limited and it was not possible to fund all applications. In recent weeks, 230 successful projects were approved for funding, with a total of just under €7 million allocated across the four Measures.

In general, applications were assessed on the basis of their eligibility under the scheme criteria and on the quality of the documentation supporting their proposals, as required in the scheme guidelines. I can confirm that the application in respect of the school referred to by the Deputy was unsuccessful as adequate supporting documentation was not provided.

CLÁR Programme

Ceisteanna (333)

Pat the Cope Gallagher

Ceist:

333. Deputy Pat The Cope Gallagher asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the reason an application for CLÁR funding by a school (details supplied) was unsuccessful under measure one, support for school and community safety measures; if her attention has been drawn to the safety concerns parents and teachers have regarding the school and daily traffic volumes due to the restrictive nature of approach roads to and from the school; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30181/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs

The CLÁR programme provides funding for small scale infrastructural projects in disadvantaged rural areas that have experienced significant levels of de-population. The 2017 programme was launched on 31 March last, with a closing date of 5 May.

Funding for the 2017 CLÁR programme was available this year under four separate Measures:

Measure 1: Support for School and Community Safety Measures

Measure 2: Play Areas

Measure 3: Targeted Community Infrastructure

Measure 4: First Responder Supports

Applications under Measures 1, 2 and 3 were submitted through the Local Authorities, while applications under Measure 4 were submitted from voluntary organisations involved in community-based response to emergency situations.

In total, more than 500 applications were received across the four Measures to the value of €15 million. I can confirm, however, that an application in respect of the school referred to by the Deputy was not received from the Local Authority by my Department under Measure 1.

In recent weeks, 230 successful projects were approved for funding, with a total of just under €7 million allocated across the four Measures. Over 800 projects have now been approved for funding since the CLÁR programme was re-launched in 2016.