Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing me to raise this issue on the Adjournment. I wish the Acting Chairman, Deputy Charlie O'Connor, and the Minister of State, Deputy Moloney, good morning. For many people living in the Kimmage, Walkinstown, Crumlin, Drimnagh, Terenure - KWCDT - Partnership area, this is not a good morning, particularly for the 50 people whose jobs will probably be lost in the coming weeks.

This is the sad result of Pobal's decision to withdraw funding from the KWCDT Partnership. Since its inception in 1994, the partnership has worked closely with many small organisations in the community, including child care, community and women's action groups, many of which would not secure funding in normal circumstances. For many of these groups, the withdrawal of the partnership from the area will make their success stories a dream of the past. Sadly, the future of the partnership and many groups working in the area is under threat. Many of these small organisations have developed over the years through funding from the KWCDT Partnership and Pobal. The news in the past couple of days that the Minister has decided to liquidate the partnership and assume responsibility for funding partnership areas is a major blow to the community of Dublin 12, in which the Acting Chairman has a strong interest.

Despite many appeals from action groups and politicians, including members of the Fianna Fáil Party, little was done in the appeal process to enable the KWCDT Partnership to remain in place. What will happen to many of the small groups working in the area? How will they be able to continue to serve the community as they have done for the past 15 years? These vital groups, which have developed in the community, include organisations involved in child care and women's groups working with young people.

A dark cloud hangs over Dublin 12 as a result of the withdrawal of funding for the partnership. While I have had issues with many of the partnerships in the community in which I have served and worked, there is a real need for partnership, especially in the severely deprived areas of Crumlin and Drimnagh. The House has discussed cases of violence and intimidation in the Dublin 12 area on many occasions. The Minister must consider that the disbandment of the KWCDT Partnership will mean that many small groups with which it is currently associated will no longer have opportunities to facilitate young people.

I appeal to the Minister of State to give me the answers I have sought unsuccessfully for the past couple of weeks in order that I can inform people in the Crumlin, Drimnagh and Walkinstown areas about what will happen to many small groups and the 50 people they employ in the coming weeks and how we will be able to sustain some community benefits in the Dublin 12 area in the coming months.

John Moloney (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I thank Deputy Byrne for raising this matter on the Adjournment. I will respond on behalf of my colleague, the Minister of State at the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Deputy John Curran. The local development social inclusion programme, LDSIP, is a series of measures that are designed to counter disadvantage and promote equality and social and economic inclusion. It is funded by the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs and managed by Pobal on the Department's behalf.

Since January 2009, the local development social inclusion programme has been implemented locally by 37 integrated local development companies, 17 urban partnerships and two employment pacts. The integrated local development companies were formed as a result of the cohesion process where organisations delivering local development social inclusion programmes and the rural development programme merged to form single entities.

Until the end of 2008, the local development social inclusion programme was implemented by area and community partnerships. KWCDT - Kimmage, Walkinstown, Crumlin, Drimnagh and Terenure - Partnership delivered the programme in the Dublin 12 area. There have been a number of significant concerns over a period of years relating to the operation, impact and effectiveness of KWCDT's contract to deliver the LDSIP in the catchment area. Recent audits and programme reviews found significant flaws in the management of the LDSIP resources and the implementation of the programme, including financial management, governance issues, general performance of management functions and the effectiveness of the work on the ground.

Since August 2008, with the co-operation and agreement of the KWCDT board, an executive facilitator with substantial experience and expertise to undertake this work was engaged to enable the partnership address and rectify these serious issues. KWCDT was funded on a core cost basis only and was given a six month period to make satisfactory progress on the problems and issues identified.

The KWCDT board representatives met with Pobal in early March 2009 to discuss the remedial action to be taken by the company based on the audit findings and other governance issues highlighted and to discuss progress made, if any. Following this meeting, the board of KWCDT wrote to Pobal stating it was withdrawing from the local development social inclusion programme and the partnership would cease its operations and wind up the company. Following this correspondence, the Pobal board made a formal decision to discontinue the local development social inclusion programme contract with KWCDT. At the end of March the board of KWCDT wrote to Pobal appealing the decision to terminate the contract. The appeal has been brought before the Pobal board, which, on 21 April 2009, upheld the original decision to discontinue the contract. While the Minister of State, Deputy Curran, has met with the board of KWCDT, he sees no reason to intervene in the original decision taken.

The Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs is committed to the provision of full county coverage of the LDSIP, through targeting the most deprived communities and is preparing plans for the continuation of services to the KWCDT geographic location to ensure the front-line services previously provided by KWCDT Partnership and Drimnagh CDP, its hosted project, are protected. The Minister of State has been informed that Pobal is in discussions with his departmental officials to progress matters in this regard.