Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I too wish the Minister well in his efforts and travails to become party leader. I hope he took the advice of the Taoiseach this morning. They were very wise words.

As I understand it, once a person signs on with Turas Nua, he or she is prohibited from doing anything else for at least one year. This forces people to engage with Turas Nua or face a cut in their social welfare payments. As someone who has been involved in community employment since 1988 and knows the valuable work being done, I note that schemes are now finding it difficult to find participants. Once they go into Turas Nua which I call Turas Uafásach, they cannot get out. They are locked in for 12 months.

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