Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Labour)

The Minister has had quite a bit of mileage out of this in recent months, that is, announcing various initiatives, including this one. Let us see some action. Can he put some meat on the bones of this? How many places does he intend to provide? We know that if one opens up new places on a voluntary basis, they will be hugely oversubscribed. That is the reality. The majority of people on jobseeker's benefit or allowance want to do something worthwhile. If the Minister provides the places, people will fill them without any difficulty. When does he intend to set up this new scheme? How many places does he intend to provide on the scheme and how does he propose to pay for it?

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