Pat Casey (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

By way of background, I served on a local enterprise board and two Leader programmes as part of the previous cohesion process. I was also chairman of a local community development committee and of the economic and enterprise special purpose committee, SPC, at local level. As such, I have a fair knowledge of what is going on. While I buy into the high level objectives of the local economic and community plan, LECP, I have major reservations about what is coming down the road. Two key components in terms of delivery of that plan are the Leader and SICAP programmes. The more that is implemented under Putting People First, the more people are being left behind. It is regrettable that the Department is not represented here today to hear what is being said. I believe that the stumbling block in the roll-out of many of these programmes is the obsession with gathering data, crunching numbers and duplication of decisions. The level of bureaucracy in this area is incredible and detrimental to communities and our people, many of whom are being left behind in this process. This process was supposed to empower communities but it does the opposite.

The aim of the social inclusion community activation programme, SICAP, is to help young people who are long-term unemployed and disadvantaged groups. The staff of SICAP are doing nothing but number crunching and box-ticking such that in my opinion SICAP should stand for "statistics informed computerised application process". As I said, people are being left behind. Often applications from vulnerable communities seeking only €100 for a piece of timber for a men's shed are being lost in the bureaucracy of this process.

In regard to the Leader programme, Leader worked with communities throughout the process of applications to delivery of the programme. My understanding is that under the new local action group, LAG, communities will have to go through the planning and procurement processes before being able to submit an application for funding. How can we ask communities to commit to that expense without knowing the likely outcome of a project application? I believe the problem lies with the Department and officials therein who do not understand how communities work. These people need to engage with communities to understand where they and individuals are coming from. These communities and individuals are doing the work of the State and all we are doing is putting obstacles in their way.

I was chairman of the local community development committee when it was established. Every week the Department issued new guidelines and protocols on how it was to be rolled out.

I recall having to sit down with the director of services to try to find out who was coming to the meeting and, in terms of putting a jersey on them, whether they were from the public or the private sector. When it came to the decision, the private sector had to have the majority. When we came to deciding whether to opt for one or two lots for site cap, we ended up with three people making that decision because of the bureaucracy involved in this process.

Most of the Leader companies bought in to putting people first and said that this was the way to go in the future, that they must work with the local authorities and engage with the local community development committees, LCDs. They have done that to their detriment. Not one of them is up and running, but three Leader companies decided not to go down that road. They went out on their own and are rolling out community projects as we speak, and we have not even started.

Previously, Leader companies reported to the Department. Leader companies now report to the council, the council reports to Pobal and Pobal is reporting to the Department. Administration work that is being done currently and that has been done for the past year and a half is being duplicated or quadruplicated on certain occasions. Work done by administrative staff in the local development companies is being checked by the council. That is being sent to Pobal, which checks it, and then it goes to the Department. What is going on in this State at the moment is madness. We have left people and communities behind. We can forget about empowering communities if we carry on in this way.

My argument is not against either of the presentations made. We need the Department to get real, cop on and deal with people at ground level.