Joe O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I am always glad to take the opportunity to talk about SICAP. That programme is our country's primary social inclusion intervention. It aims to reduce poverty and promote social inclusion and equality. It is delivered locally by the local development companies referenced by the Deputy, who work with the most disadvantaged and hardest to reach in our communities.

My Department is in constant contact with the 49 local development companies, LDCs, and their representative body, the Irish Local Development Network. I am familiar with the work they do, their unique role and their potential to play a key role in the overall framework of supports for new arrivals from Ukraine.

I believe SICAP to be an important programme and I was delighted to secure a 10% increase for it for 2022, the largest increase since the programme was launched. This represents a €4 million increase and provides for the creation of a significant number of job places for new community work on the ground in communities across Ireland.

Late last year, I also asked that, in 2022, SICAP have a particular focus on five national priorities, one of which was new communities. SICAP staff, working with LDCs, have valuable experience and knowledge of available resources in their areas to support migrants, asylum seekers and refugees. Every realistic flexibility is being offered by the Department in respect of SICAP so that its circa 600 community development workers can contribute locally in responding to the needs of the Ukrainian refugees as they are accommodated around the country.

SICAP workers were to the forefront in their communities during the community call response to Covid-19. Building on these structures and relationships, community response forums are being repurposed in each local authority area. These will enable all those involved at a local level to work together to support the integration of Ukrainian refugees into our communities under the stewardship of the local authorities. I am keeping a close eye on local efforts around the country, in particular the role played by LDCs and SICAP. I will continue to support them however I can.

See this speech in context