Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein)
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Today's meeting came on the back of a report we commissioned on employment blackspots across the State. For those who have read the report, you will see that many of the blackspots are in Limerick, with five of the top ten. In fairness, this is down from seven in the top ten in 2016 but a lot of progress still needs to be made. As was mentioned, some of the activation schemes we have going on across the State, and particularly in Limerick, are done through the community centres. It will be no surprise to anyone in Limerick or the mid-west region to hear that all those blackspots include the regeneration areas, such as Moyross, Southill, St. Mary's Park and Ballinacurra Weston. I thank the community centres in those areas that have done jobs' fairs recently. They did not get off to a great start but have become much more successful. St. Munchin's Community Centre is not in a regeneration area but it does really good job activation schemes. The community employment scheme is going well there.

I have spoken to the Minister about my concerns that much of this work is funded through the Limerick regeneration programme, which has basically finished. Funding is only committed until the end of this year and we are now almost into October. Many people are employed on job activation schemes in some of these most disadvantaged areas. There is no commitment to further funding from January of next year. An affiliate of Ms O'Brien's organisation had an office in Limerick which was very useful but through circumstances, that is gone.

From the report, it seems that Limerick seems to have the same ones in first or second place. They move around but they never really come down on the ratings. There is always huge unemployment in those areas. This is linked in to social deprivation and poverty and the Pobal statistics will confirm this. I do not know if any of the witnesses have been contacted by people in those organisations regarding their concerns about funding from January.