Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I will make three points regarding where the debate on this issue stands in order to articulate my deep and continuing support for the communities of the north-east inner city and also to emphasise the reason I believe this Bill represents the wrong approach. For too long, the communities in the north-east inner city did not receive the supports that were needed. In that context, the view was that what could work in certain placed would always work elsewhere. That approach has not worked and it is one to which I am committed and determined to change. Like Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan and my constituency colleague, Deputy Mary Lou McDonald, who spoke earlier, I have a deep sense of privilege in and commitment to representing those citizens and to doing more and doing better on their behalf.

This leads me to my first point, namely, what has happened since the community that I represent was wrecked by a cycle of murder and mayhem. When gathering information for his report, Mr. Kieran Mulvey went through an extensive and non-political consultative process. He then made a set of recommendations and proposed a structure that has been honoured and implemented by the Government. A process was undertaken that led to a particular recommendation that was delivered, which, fundamentally, was specific to the communities of the north inner city and which recognised that their involvement in this work is the only way in which sustainable progress can be made.

I do not need the words or work of others to remind me why we need to make this progress. When I meet schoolchildren and the elderly and see how proud they are of the areas in which they have grown up or are growing up and the fear but also the hope they have about the future, it is a reminder of why we cannot lose sight of what we need to deliver for these communities. We have not yet delivered. The work of the American social thinker and writer, David Brooks, could not be more relevant to the work we are doing there. He states:

It could be that the neighbourhood, not the individual, is the essential unit of social change. If you're trying to improve lives, maybe you have to think about changing many elements of a single neighbourhood, in a systemic way, at a steady pace.

That is my second point. That is what we are working so hard to do.

I draw the House's attention to the progress report for the north-east inner city for 2017. There is a second report on the way for 2018. The value of this report is not what is contained in the main text but, rather, the information in the appendices, which lay out, by policy area, the detailed interventions that are happening, along with the funding that is needed in order to make a difference to the citizens who I am privileged to represent and to respond to their needs in a new way. I could go through all the different points of intervention that are laid down.

I could go through how they are funded and delivered but I have a limited time. However, I will make one point that the most important interventions we can make are the ones that are not always visible. It is what we do in schools, in parishes and in the family home. The breadth of work on this already under way through community involvement and co-ordination from the Dublin north-east inner city task force is happening. I can understand why this might be not good enough for some because invisible change is always the easiest about which to be sceptical. However, one must look at the physical changes under way such as the new primary care centre in Summerhill, the redevelopment of St. Mary's Mansions, Sean McDermott Street, and the significant investment in upgrading the Lourdes day care centre on Lower Sean McDermott Street. Only this week, the new plans for Rutland Street school were shared with the groups and the staff at the school. There is work under way in all the schools in this part of the city. This is physical and visible work. New childcare facilities have been put in place on Oriel Street. This is physical, tangible and real change.

This is happening through a structure that is independent of me as Minister for Finance. It is independently chaired by Michael Stone with community involvement and with all relevant State bodies and agencies represented on it. This is a structure specific to Dublin’s north-east inner city. Nobody should kid themselves if this legislation goes beyond Second Stage. Every Deputy who has a similar area in his or her constituency would come forward with amendments to change the legislation to say that this group should be specific to their area.

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