Mr. Frank Flannery:

So far we have not gone into too much detail on the grounds that if the Government and the political establishment agree to such a proposal, they will have their own views on how it will be done. I strongly advocate initiatives such as the social innovation fund, which will see the establishment of a new body, and the jobs generation scheme, as the type of organisations to which money could go. One would be absolutely certain it would be distributed throughout the economy in the most effective possible way. There is a very strong emphasis on the social economy and social entrepreneurship. We will try to assist organisations. It would be a source of capital and development capital for the not for profit sector, which is being starved of resources in every size, shape and form at present. This is another aspect of it. The Government might very well state if people are contributing money that other types of operations would be equally valid. Who is to say relief of poverty or organisations such as the Society of St. Vincent de Paul are at least as necessary as some of the issues we are discussing? We are focusing on the jobs agenda, social entrepreneurship and innovation in the social economy. We believe this lines up fairly well with where the national sense of need is at present, but the Government, the Department of Finance and the Dáil must be taken into account.

If there is a scheme, it should be open. A venture that is of interest to me, given what I am doing, is starting. It is called the Cork Foundation - one of the Deputy's colleagues has an interest in it - and is getting purchase in Cork. It has the same focus. Why would it not be possible for people to nominate members of the target community with a Cork affiliation or interest to that area? The same would apply in Limerick or elsewhere. This flexibility could be built into the scheme.