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Labour Activation Programmes

Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 3 May 2018

Thursday, 3 May 2018

Ceisteanna (7)

Brendan Smith

Ceist:

7. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the number of participants on Tús and the rural social scheme in 2017; the number of places on both schemes for which a financial provision has been made in 2018; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [19279/18]

Amharc ar fhreagra

Freagraí ó Béal (12 píosaí cainte)

As the Minister knows, there are many positive dimensions to both Tús and the rural social scheme in that they provide worthwhile employment opportunities for many who, unfortunately, are not in a position to get a job in the labour market. Furthermore, they provide a great service to local communities by providing new facilities and enhancing and maintaining existing facilities. I sincerely hope that, in the Estimates this year, the Minister can ensure anybody eligible to participate in either scheme is not deprived of the opportunity to do so.

Jesus, I hope we would never deprive anybody of the opportunity to participate on an activation course supplied by the State. The problem, and the reason I made the changes alluded to by the Deputy's colleague a couple of weeks ago, was that Tús and the community employment, CE, companies were telling me they were finding it difficult to fill their courses. It is certainly not because we are refusing people.

As the Deputy may be aware, almost €840 million is being provided to be spent on working-age employment supports provided by the Department. It is totally recognised by the Government and probably by everybody in this House that work schemes such as Tús and CE are such positive initiatives. They enable the long-term unemployed to make a contribution to their communities while up-skilling themselves and making themselves familiar in a particular work environment.

As we all have seen, every single town and village in the country has a CE scheme. We know exactly not only how communities benefit from the work done on the schemes but also the huge benefit to the participants. They participate for a variety of reasons. Some are genuinely looking for activation, training and employment while others genuinely just want to give back to their community, be busy, be involved and be socially included.

To answer the Deputy's question specifically, Tús is delivered through 47 implementing bodies, or local development companies, and Údarás na Gaeltachta. At the end of December 2017, there were 6,409 participants on the Tús programme. The 2018 budget Estimate for Tús is just over €100 million. With the ongoing reductions in the numbers on the live register, which I hope will continue, it is necessary to ensure the number and nature of activation schemes, in addition to the conditions governing participation on them, continue to be appropriate to the people we are serving.

Deputies on all sides of this House are fully aware of the positive benefits of the rural social scheme, RSS, which is a supplementary income scheme for farmers and fishermen. The complete success of that scheme is recognised. Of all our schemes, that is the one that is oversubscribed. I am very pleased to be able to add 250 places to that particular scheme. They were allocated several weeks ago, and they are currently being filled.

I welcome the fact there is an increase in the number to ensure that everybody who is eligible to participate may do so. The six-year participation limit for the rural social scheme also needs to be looked at in the future. Some people are coming to an age, or are at an age, at which they will not get a job in the labour market. I suggest that they should be eligible for another year or so. If that eligibility could be changed, it would ensure that people do not have to go onto jobseeker’s benefits in advance of pension payment, which is very important.

It would also be worthwhile if there was a training element to the rural social scheme. There is very good work going on in my own county, where projects like the restoration of old walls of churches or community halls have been taken on. On its own initiative, the local group has added a training element to the work. It is very important to improve the eligibility criteria regarding the time limit on participation and to have a training element.

In some places in rural Ireland people have to travel a distance to participate in a scheme. At the moment, the top-up added to what a person would receive in social welfare payments is something like €22 or €24. At times, that may be used up in travel. Furthermore, we do not want to have one or two people working on their own in isolation. One of the aims of the rural social scheme was to combat rural isolation. It is good when there are a half a dozen or eight people working together, rather than a person in a parish on his or her own doing the job, which would be self-defeating. I would appreciate if the travel element could be looked at.

I am a little confused. The extra top-up payment of €22 is for community employment, CE, and Tús participants. The RSS is an entirely different scheme, and it is genuinely an income support for farmers and fisherman. The governance of both of the schemes is not the same. If I can concentrate on the RSS for a second, prior to 1 February 2017, a participant on the RSS could spend his or her entire working life on the scheme. This resulted in a lack of turnover of places for people. There were not enough places for all the eligible people to be able to come onto the scheme and stay on it, which resulted in there being no ebb and flow. There were people who were outside the scope of the scheme whom we were not helping. Additional places obviously fix that. However, because of this, perhaps 50% of the RSS participants have been on the scheme for in excess of ten years. As a result, there were no real new opportunities for people, other than the extra few places that were awarded every year.

From 1 February 2017, we changed it so that a person had to be over 25 to be on the scheme. The change acknowledged that numerous other activation options were available for young people to counteract or to compensate those under 25 who were effectively being excluded. The entry of people aged 25 and over as participants in that scheme was introduced on 1 February 2017. People who were on the scheme beforehand obviously got to stay on it.

I thank the Minister for her reply. She might look again at the idea of adding a training element to the scheme. Perhaps that can be enhanced or made a specific requirement.

Does the Deputy mean in the RSS?

Yes, I think so.

There is no training in RSS whatsoever. It is an income support that allows people to be socially included.

I will give the Minister an example. In my own county there is a scheme whose supervisor is John Beglan, who is an extremely hardworking and committed man. In other communities local facilities have been enhanced. In my own county, some of the smaller churches had their grounds, boundary walls, etc., enhanced. There was an element of building instruction training.

Would the Deputy like to see that in the RSS?

Yes, I think that would enhance the scheme. It would also give the participants better opportunities to get jobs locally when they finish on the scheme, if they wish to seek another employment opportunity, perhaps in the construction sector. I think it is important to look at the training element, if possible.

I am sorry. I did not mean to interrupt the Deputy, but I just wanted to be 100% sure that I knew what he meant. There is no such training element in the RSS at the moment, because when it was established, I think by one of the Deputy's colleagues, it was specifically intended to address low-income people in the two particular sectors of farming and fishing. It aimed to use the skills of its beneficiaries, most of whom were men, to improve local areas just as the Deputy has described, by refurbishing walls, bridges or church grounds in their own communities. Never say never. Let us have a look at all the schemes and see if there are any improvements that could be made to all or some of them.

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