As the Deputy will be aware, I secured Government agreement Wednesday 9th January (Government Decision S180/20/10/0861) to establish an Interdepartmental Group to explore the most appropriate organisational arrangements, including which Department should host Community Employment (CE) Social Inclusion schemes.
The group will comprise of officials from my own Department and officials at Principal Officer level or equivalent from the Departments of Public Expenditure and Reform; Agriculture, Food and the Marine; Rural and Community Development; Children and Youth Affairs; Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht; Health; Justice and Equality and Housing, Planning and Local Government.
I welcome any proposals put forward by community groups and expect the outcome of the deliberations of the Interdepartmental group to be available later this year.