Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I agree with Deputy Calleary about the significant work that community and voluntary organisations have done throughout the Covid-19 crisis. We must welcome the €40 million package of support for these organisations, charities and social enterprises announced on 8 Mary 2020. Many of these community and voluntary organisations have seen their incomes decimated because of the Covid-19 restrictions. This emergency package includes a stability fund of €35 million and an Innovate Together fund of €5 million for these organisations. The stability fund will provide important support to sectors, including health and social care, child and family services, housing, homelessness and community services such as meals on wheels and old age supports. While the deadline for the first round of applications for the Innovate Together fund has passed, two further application rounds are planned for June and September of this year. Could the Minister bring forward details of these immediately?

Regarding rural regeneration and development and town and village renewal programmes, which I know the Minister values, as do I, Tipperary town in my constituency is in the very early stages of developing a long-term and sustainable development plan. It is envisaged that infrastructure, job creation, commercial service provision, provision of housing and enhancement of heritage and other community assets will all form part of the plan. However, one piece of the jigsaw is required to make it possible for all the others to fall into place and that is the need for a ring road for Tipperary town. There have been reports that what is now being discussed in this regard is an inner relief road. What is needed is a road that routes traffic around the town rather than one that would simply reroute traffic through other parts of the town. An inner relief road would clearly hamper the overall ambition for the town and merely relocate rather than solve existing problems. The Department and others will be required to invest significant funding in the coming years if we are to make the vision for Tipperary town a reality. It is critical that the main infrastructure provision is done properly because it will impact on all other plans. Will the Minister put on the record within the Department that a ring road is what is required for Tipperary town rather than an inner relief road?

I will talk about Tús and community employment, CE, schemes in the limited time I have left. I know that these matters do not fall directly within the remit of the Department but they are hugely important for rural communities. I ask that restrictions in place at the moment be reviewed in line with Covid. In the case of Tús, the existence of 12-month-only placements pertaining to many of the current participants means that they have missed out on actual working time due to the lockdown. Could their time be extended beyond their finishing date? If it was possible, could the option of a second year on a scheme be introduced and possibly longer for those aged over 55? Could the waiting time between placements be reduced from the current three years to one year? Could mandatory retirement at 66 be abolished because the schemes are particularly useful for people who may be of retirement age but who still wish to work within their community? There are Tús and CE schemes that cannot recruit employees because of social distancing. If it can be proved that social distancing can be observed without difficulty, as many of these participants work on their own, could these schemes be resumed as quickly as possible? It would obviously be of great value to rural communities.

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