Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Chairman. I look forward to working with the new committee in the next few years. I wish the Chairman and members well and I hope we can work together for the betterment of rural Ireland. I welcome the opportunity to discuss with the select committee my Department's Revised Estimate for 2017.

The Department of Rural and Community Development was established on 19 July 2017. The decision to establish the Department is an important one for rural and urban communities throughout Ireland. It underlines the Government's commitment as set out in detail in chapter 4 of A Programme for a Partnership Government, that is, to ensure that the economic recovery can be felt by every community and that we build greater resilience for the future.

The Government’s focus over the past two programmes for Government has been on recovery. This focus has paid off. There is no doubt the economy is experiencing the kind of growth we had hoped for. The reduction in the unemployment rate demonstrates how much has been achieved. The Taoiseach has also been referring more recently to creating a republic of opportunity for all citizens. The challenge is to ensure that the opportunity is experienced by everyone.

At the national level, the data show the extent of the recovery. However, as is clear from the Pobal report I launched last week, the picture is more complex when we go below the national, or even the regional, level. At local level, we can see that the recovery was not even. Some communities were hit harder by the recession while some have recovered much more slowly than others. That is the challenge I believe that I have been set - to support communities, especially those in rural areas and those who experience disadvantage, to have an equal chance of experiencing the recovery.

The opportunity and challenge for the new Department is to ensure that the consolidation of key policy, supports and programmes makes a difference. The first task is to ensure the Department’s own programmes of investment support local communities through projects they have identified as priorities. These projects, they believe, will support job creation, attract tourism investment and contribute to quality of life in their areas. The second priority is to ensure that communities are vibrant and sustainable, that individuals have voices and that they have choices. The third priority is to ensure that the community and voluntary sector are supported to continue to contribute to social cohesion. We have a unique asset in our communities, we and volunteers across the whole country want to promote and enhance the social fabric. I have a cross-Government mandate to ensure that the policies introduced by Government support growth regionally and locally, and help to sustain communities no matter where people choose to live.

The further Revised Estimate before the select committee today sets out my Department’s budget for 2017. Gross expenditure of almost €163 million is budgeted for my Department this year. This represents an increase of 21% on the provision in 2016 for similar programmes. The Department’s current expenditure provision for 2017 is €85.72 million. The total capital provision for 2017 is €76.9 million.

Turning to some specific areas, the Department’s rural development and regional affairs division seeks to promote and facilitate long-term sustainable economic and social progress across rural Ireland. A sum of €80.3 million of my Department’s budget for 2017 relates directly to rural development. Key actions include the implementation of the Leader programme at a cost of €30 million, elements of the Rural Development Programme 2014-2020, and the delivery of a range of rural development schemes, including CLÁR, for which €15 million has been allocated, a town and village enhancement scheme, for which €12 million has been allocated, and the local improvement scheme, LIS, for which €10 million has been allocated.

The Leader programme is administered by local action groups, LAGs. These are partnerships of both public and private entities from a defined geographical area. They are responsible for selecting and approving projects in their respective areas in accordance with local development strategies developed specifically for their area. The Leader programme initiative was set up by the European Commission in 1991 to drive rural development in local communities. It uses a bottom-up or community-led local development approach to rural development.The current programme is focused on three themes: economic development, enterprise development and job creation, social inclusion; and rural environment. A number of schemes operate under the national rural development programme which has an allocation of €15 million in 2017. The outdoor recreation infrastructure scheme is part of the Government’s Action Plan for Rural Development and will provide funding for the development of new outdoor recreational infrastructure or the necessary maintenance, enhancement or promotion of existing outdoor recreational infrastructure in Ireland. The CLÁR programme is a targeted investment programme which provides funding for small-scale infrastructural projects in rural areas that have suffered the greatest levels of population decline. The aim of CLÁR is to attract people to live and work in these communities.

The aim of the town and village renewal scheme is to support the revitalisation of towns and villages in order to improve the living and working environment of their communities and increase their potential to support increased economic activity into the future. The 2017 town and village renewal scheme, launched in April this year, focuses on projects which can help to enhance and develop rural towns and villages with a particular emphasis on stimulating economic development.

I am delighted to have reintroduced the local improvement scheme in 2017. This scheme supports local authorities in the maintenance and improvement of non-public roads and lanes. An allocation of €10 million is being made available in 2017. Minister of State, Deputy Kyne, will deal with broadband. The Department's 2017 Vote also provides €80.3 million in funding for a range of community programmes. The bulk of the funding, over €42 million, is provided for social inclusion and community activation programmes, SICAP. The aim of SICAP is to reduce poverty, promote social inclusion and equality through local, regional and national engagement and collaboration. I am confident that allocation of over €42 million for 2017 will allow the continuation of important supports for people in disadvantaged communities and will allow for the key essential front-line services delivered through the programme to be maintained. SICAP works with individuals coming from targeted groups such as those experiencing disadvantage, lone parents, low income workers and households, refugees and asylum seekers, people with disabilities, Travellers, Roma people and the unemployed. The programme also works with local community groups to support them to address issues that affect them.

The Government framework policy for local and community development supports the development of Government structures as part of the local government reform process. Both local community development committees, LCDCs, and public participation networks, PPNs, are providing funding supports as part of the community programme. The development of these processes and structures are strategically very important to the new Department as we work to ensure local voices influence planning and investment decisions at local level. As an example, the SICAP programme is managed and implemented through the local community development committees as a new governance model for local and community programmes in each local authority area. LCDCs give the local flexibility to make sure that SICAP is implemented in ways which address the key issues in the area. Deputy Kyne will deal with the other part of the national organisations.

A recast RAPID, revitalising areas by planning, investment and development, programme is also funded under the community programme. The programme for partnership Government included a commitment to reactivate the programme in 2017. RAPID provides support to groups which are tackling social inclusion and helping to improve the quality of life for residents in disadvantaged urban areas and provincial towns across the country. The 2017 RAPID funding allocation has a special focus on improving the quality of life in Dublin's north-east inner city, an area which has rightly been prioritised for investment by the Government. The new programme has been allocated a budget of €4.5 million this year. There is also an allocation of €500,000 for legacy commitments under the old programme. The community facilities scheme, CFS, is targeted at disadvantaged urban and rural areas and aims to fund projects that seek to enhance communities, address disadvantage and improve social cohesion at the local level. The scheme is rolled out by the LCDCs. Examples of eligible areas for funding are the development and renovation of community centres, community amenities, youth clubs, sports and recreation facilities or improvements of town parks and common areas and spaces. The community facilities scheme funds the library development programme of €3.8 million as well as the implementation of the Peace IV programme that funds actions that promote social and economic stability in Northern Ireland and the Border region.

This is an exciting opportunity and I know that the members share with me the concern that regardless of where they live everybody living in rural areas and areas of disadvantage would have the same chances and choices. The Government is committed to ensuring that its policies recognise the unique challenges these communities face. Similarly, future investment choices must take account of these challenges. We must ensure that they are discrete and targeted measures within my Vote and others which mitigate the risk that these challenges pose. I know that the members will work with me in ensuring ongoing attention to these challenges and how we might meet them. I look forward to our engagement and I have kept my remarks as brief as possible to allow a full discussion on the programmes and funding of my Department this year. I would be happy to deal with any questions. If the committee allows, Deputy Kyne might just say a few words on two issues.