Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for his comprehensive reply and welcome the fact that for the first time, there will be one consolidated national budget because in the past, there have been difficulties in terms of how the schemes and funding are administered. The committee which oversees Laois Domestic Abuse Services raised more than €12,000 voluntarily last year.

I refer to the equalisation of funding. The Minister of State said the agency has advised that population size will be one of the factors informing the process. I welcome that and was going to raise it with the Minister of State. County Laois does not have a huge population - it is approximately 84,000 - but the service covers a large catchment area and sometimes people come from north Tipperary or west Offaly where there may be gaps in services. We should take the size of the region into account when allocating funding.

In 2011, the last year for which I have figures, County Carlow, which is a similar size to County Laois, received €134,000 while County Laois received €56,000, although the Minister of State is correct that it received €64,900 last year. By the way, I am not arguing for County Carlow's funding to be reduced. County Tipperary received €176,000 while County Longford received €124,000 in 2011. The Minister of State will be able to see the problem there and I welcome the fact population size will be taken into consideration. That is a very positive move, as is the fact there will be a consolidated fund.

The Minister of State said Tusla will communicate with funding services shortly to advise. Will he raise this in the Department and convey to the civil servants, Tusla and the funding agency that Laois Domestic Violence Service is really under pressure and is operating on a wing and a prayer? Can the funding be expedited because it now almost the end of February and Laois Domestic Violence Service had a very busy year last year and its resources are on the floor? Will the Minister of State work that out with the senior officials?

I referred to the other counties not to have their funding lowered but to illustrate the 2011 model. I welcome the move towards equalisation based on population.

Will the Minister of State raise the issue of a second full-time position in Laois Domestic Violence Service? There is only one full-time position. The co-ordinator, Ms Marna Carroll, does amazing work but there is only so much she can do. Will the Minister of State ensure this valuable service has the resources to continue to provide vital services to women in County Laois who need it? Setting up the family law centres was one of the positive things we did. They are under pressure but that is a matter for another day. The other positive thing we did was to set up these centres and we must ensure they continue. Let us hope instances of domestic violence are not on the increase and that it is a case of better reporting or that women and men are more likely to come forward. Let us ensure we provide an open door for them when they come looking for it in their hour of need.

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