Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I move:

That Dáil Éireann:

notes:— the central role local development companies play in providing local services across Ireland, including the delivery of the Leader programme and social inclusion programmes;

— that local integrated development companies also provide supports across a wide range of areas such as rural transport, child care, rural recreation and youth development and administer schemes such as the rural social scheme and the Tús scheme;

— that approximately 1,900 people are directly employed in the sector, thousands of positions are supported by the schemes involved and some €50 million is due to be spent on the programmes in 2014; and

— that local and community development programmes have a central part in developing and supporting local enterprise and sustaining jobs;further notes the Government’s plans to align local and community development programmes within local authorities from 1 July with new programmes due to begin in 2015;

condemns the:— Government’s cynical failure to engage in real consultation with the integrated community companies; and

— erosion of local democratic structures in the Government’s local government reform; andcalls on the Government to:— fully review the approach to the delivery of community services and programmes by these companies;

— protect funding for Leader programmes through 50:50 co-financing;

— ensure companies that are tendering for Leader funding under the new local authority structure would be obliged to have partnership structures on their boards and their headquarters in the area of the local authority in question to ensure community ethos and local representation are at the heart of the delivery of programmes into the future; and

— ensure these companies are used as a one-stop-shop to deliver rural services, including rural transport and community schemes, and continue to play a central part in sustaining the fabric of communities across Ireland.

I wish to share time with Deputies Dara Calleary and John Browne.

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