Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Question 21: To ask the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs his view regarding the impact the recent cut to expenditure will have on front-line services in rural and Gaeltacht areas; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47196/09]

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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As the Minister for Finance stated when introducing the 2010 budget, in the past year we have been running to stand still in terms of spending on public services. Accordingly, in the 2010 budget the Government decided, as part of its strategy to manage its way through the current severe economic crisis and to return the country to prosperity, to reduce spending on public services by almost €1 billion in 2010 compared with the pre-budget estimates. To the greatest extent possible, the savings have been sought through efficiencies rather than through reductions in services.

In the case of my Department, gross funding at €415.426 million in 2010 is a reduction of 13% relative to the 2009 allocation of €475.701 million. Current funding is reduced by 9%, a decrease of €32.1 million, and capital funding is reduced by 21%, a decrease of €28.175 million.

In a joint statement with the Minister of State at my Department, Deputy John Curran, on budget day, we stressed that our primary concern is to make every effort to ensure the daily front-line services provided with funding from my Department are protected, especially those focused on the needs of the most socially deprived communities. Every saving that can be made from cutting down on overheads will be pursued so that the entire range of rural and Gaeltacht communities we serve, as well as urban and island communities, retain, to the greatest extent possible, the services that have been developed in partnership with them over the years.

Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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The Minister lost the battle in the Cabinet. No doubt the cutbacks were savage. Community development funding is down €22.4 million, drugs funding is down €4.4 million, Gaeltacht and islands funding is down €23.4 million, and promotion of the Irish language funding is down €2.8 million.

I received many representations from the community development programmes, CDPs, in particular. The Minister is amalgamating some of them and getting rid of others. The timeframe is what is really worrying them. Some of them accept there must be changes and some of them want to work with the Department. First, they get a letter stating this will not be dealt with until March next; they then get a letter stating it must be done by December. I ask the Minister and his junior Minister to postpone any decisions on these CDPs and to sit down, talk to them, see if they can come to an arrangement. These are very important, both for city and rural areas.

Gaeltacht and islands funding is down €23.4 million. That would be a massive cutback in any Department. Can the Minister operate within his Department with such cuts?

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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Deputy Ring raised two questions. No doubt there are questions on the Order Paper for my Minister of State, Deputy Curran. However, 29 CDPs have received notice that the intention is not to continue with funding. They have been told why and they have an opportunity to appeal, which can be lodged any day up to 15 January next and which will be heard by an appeals board or group set up within the Department but which is separate from those who made the original decision. The view of those who assessed these CDPs is that they were not effective and, therefore, there was no point in continuing to fund them.

On the wider re-organisation, Deputy Ring has complained bitterly time and again about too many different bodies doing the same thing. What we are doing is streamlining it into one clear social inclusion programme. No doubt when the Deputy sees this work through, he will fully support it, as he has always supported rationalisation of that kind.

On the Gaeltacht and islands spend, it is true that there is a decrease in the funding but a large part of that decrease, approximately €12 million, relates to a decrease in island capital funding from the high level of €23 million. That is quite easily explained by the fact that the largest ever single infrastructure project on the Aran Islands will complete during next year. In addition, major infrastructure such as the airstrips on Inisbofin and in Cleggan are largely complete. There is some work outstanding, but the heavy infrastructure work is coming to completion. It was always planned that the funding would wind down once we had got over that peak of doing so many projects together.

There are still a number of projects that need to be done. We are still planning them. In particular, there is a pier upgrade needed on Inis Oirr, which will not be as expensive a job as those on the other two islands, and planning is going ahead. There is a pier in Rannach in Donegal for which planning is still going ahead. However, the kind of spend there has been in the past two years on the islands was never projected into the future and that is a large slice of the reduction in the Gaeltacht spend.

I would admit that the Gaeltacht spend is tight but, for example, there were recommendations that the Irish colleges were to close and I have funding for the Irish colleges next year. The main programmes will run even though there may be cutbacks here and there in the operational programmes.

Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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On community development, I agree I have stated on many occasions I want to see the duplication stopped and I certainly would support the Minister on that. What I am saying is the Minister needs to talk to these community groups. He cannot just write to them stating this is what the Department is doing. He needs to talk to them, he needs to sit down with them. On the appeals mechanism, he must give them an opportunity to make their case and fight their corner, and then make the decisions. However, what is happening is they are getting letters one day stating it must be done before March and then they are told it must be done before Christmas. At least there is an appeals mechanism.

These CDPs are doing extremely good work and the Minister must sit down and talk with them. The other day the joint committee was trying to bring the Minister in again to stall the process and give them an opportunity to make their case. I agree that some of these groups must be amalgamated. They themselves know and are ready for change, but they need a little time.

What is the financial allocation for community supports for older persons for 2010? Is it the same as that for last year, or has it been increased? What is the up-to-date position? I am worried about that important scheme. We must ensure the funding is in place for that scheme to protect the elderly in their homes. That scheme has worked. The Minister opened up that scheme and closed it down again. Will that scheme be in place for 2010?

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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On CSOP, we have not finalised the exact allocation but the scheme will operate again next year. As Deputy Ring will be aware, the review is nearly complete and the scheme is open at present.

On the query on the CDPs, if I learned one lesson in the re-organisation of the Leader partnership companies, it was that drawing out these matters does not solve anything. Therefore, it is important to set finite dates.

There are two issues here. There is a small number, approximately 30 out of 180 CPDs, which are recommended for closure. There is a clear process in place. They have been told why, they get a date to appeal, the appeal will be assessed and that will finish that process. There is no point in dragging it out because a decision must be made. However, they are very much the minority. The rest of the CDPs will retain approximately the same funding next year as they had this year.

The third issue is the new overarching programme so that where there are CDPs and a partnership company operating in the same area, there is a coherent approach. The Minister of State has stated that the modalities of that will be worked out over the coming year but the decision on principle has been made and will be implemented.