John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State referred to the fact that there will be an overall effectiveness model. I want to bring it to her attention that she provided the same reply on 23 January 2018. It is taking a long time to implement the model. At the same time, we are expecting the task forces to effectively operate on the budgets of 2014. That is not doable - it is not possible. I am all for accountability and for measuring the effectiveness of the various programmes. In the meantime, however, they must be funded. I am concerned that the lack of funding will mean that the projects will not be as effective as they could and should be.

The Minister of State also referred to once-off additional funding. I still believe that is not the most effective way to proceed. When money becomes available in a Department, this is one method of using it. However, increasing core funding, where there are managed programmes which provide certainty and which are effective, is much better than once-off funding. A lot of time goes into setting up those programmes.

On Monday night last, after our visit to mark the centenary of the first sitting of the Dáil in the Mansion House, I returned to Áras Chrónáin in Clondalkin where the Clondalkin drug and alcohol task force had an evening to present certificates to a number of people graduating from its addiction studies course. I chatted to those involved and two interesting things emerged. I spoke to the co-ordinator of the task force, who reminded me that when the it was established in the late nineties, the catchment area for which it was responsible had a population of 35,000. Today, it is 117,000. It was receiving more money then than it is now. We are setting the task forces an impossible task. When I was presenting the certificates, it dawned on me that some of the people had travelled from far and wide. I asked if there was huge interest in the course. There were 20 people graduating, but over 70 had applied for the course. I asked the co-ordinator why there were so many and was informed that other task forces do not have the funding to run similar courses. This is an example of the impact of the restricted amount of funding available. It is not tenable or feasible to state that we will wait and have a new model next year. I am appealing to the Minister of State to go back to the Ministers for Health and Finance and argue that there should be an increase in the allocation of core funding, rather than once-off additional payments being made over the course of the year. That would help us improve the position year on year. The base has been significantly eroded because the lower level introduced in 2014 has remained in place. This matter must be dealt with as a matter or urgency. The programmes and projects that should be supported in our communities cannot be as a result of the amount of funding available.

See this speech in context