Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees
Thursday, 30 March 2023
Public Accounts Committee
Appropriation Accounts 2021
Vote 42 - Rural and Community Development
Report of the Accounts of the Public Services 2021
Chapter 6: Central Government Funding of Local Authorities
9:30 am
Mr. Paul Geraghty:
We are very aware of the community wealth principle. We have been made aware of it externally and there are internal conversations about it. To add to what the Secretary General mentioned already, we are doing much work in this area. For example, my programme, SICAP, supports many social enterprises. Those generate income which is spent and used locally. We support many social enterprises like that. There is also consideration within our Department, which we are talking to the OGP about, for social clauses and money being allocated. On the North-South piece, we are engaging with our counterparts in the North about community development standards and an all-Ireland endorsement board for standards in the community development sector. There has been much recent co-operation. We will get some information from them about the community wealth paper and exchange.