John Moloney (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

I thank Deputy Byrne for raising this matter on the Adjournment. I will respond on behalf of my colleague, the Minister of State at the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Deputy John Curran. The local development social inclusion programme, LDSIP, is a series of measures that are designed to counter disadvantage and promote equality and social and economic inclusion. It is funded by the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs and managed by Pobal on the Department's behalf.

Since January 2009, the local development social inclusion programme has been implemented locally by 37 integrated local development companies, 17 urban partnerships and two employment pacts. The integrated local development companies were formed as a result of the cohesion process where organisations delivering local development social inclusion programmes and the rural development programme merged to form single entities.

Until the end of 2008, the local development social inclusion programme was implemented by area and community partnerships. KWCDT - Kimmage, Walkinstown, Crumlin, Drimnagh and Terenure - Partnership delivered the programme in the Dublin 12 area. There have been a number of significant concerns over a period of years relating to the operation, impact and effectiveness of KWCDT's contract to deliver the LDSIP in the catchment area. Recent audits and programme reviews found significant flaws in the management of the LDSIP resources and the implementation of the programme, including financial management, governance issues, general performance of management functions and the effectiveness of the work on the ground.

Since August 2008, with the co-operation and agreement of the KWCDT board, an executive facilitator with substantial experience and expertise to undertake this work was engaged to enable the partnership address and rectify these serious issues. KWCDT was funded on a core cost basis only and was given a six month period to make satisfactory progress on the problems and issues identified.

The KWCDT board representatives met with Pobal in early March 2009 to discuss the remedial action to be taken by the company based on the audit findings and other governance issues highlighted and to discuss progress made, if any. Following this meeting, the board of KWCDT wrote to Pobal stating it was withdrawing from the local development social inclusion programme and the partnership would cease its operations and wind up the company. Following this correspondence, the Pobal board made a formal decision to discontinue the local development social inclusion programme contract with KWCDT. At the end of March the board of KWCDT wrote to Pobal appealing the decision to terminate the contract. The appeal has been brought before the Pobal board, which, on 21 April 2009, upheld the original decision to discontinue the contract. While the Minister of State, Deputy Curran, has met with the board of KWCDT, he sees no reason to intervene in the original decision taken.

The Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs is committed to the provision of full county coverage of the LDSIP, through targeting the most deprived communities and is preparing plans for the continuation of services to the KWCDT geographic location to ensure the front-line services previously provided by KWCDT Partnership and Drimnagh CDP, its hosted project, are protected. The Minister of State has been informed that Pobal is in discussions with his departmental officials to progress matters in this regard.

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