David Cullinane (Sinn Fein)

I welcome the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Joan Burton. We had a short discussion on this issue in the context of the Social Welfare and Pensions Bill last year but I tabled this matter on the Adjournment to discuss the impact of the community employment, CE, scheme cuts and specifically the impact the cut in the material and training allowance will have on a number of CE schemes in Waterford.

As the Minister is aware, there has been a 66% cut to the material and training allowance for each course participant. That has an impact on the ability of some of the schemes to deliver services. These schemes depend on this money to pay for training, insurance, rent, equipment, tools, telephone and everything other than wages. It goes towards paying for how the course operates and ensures participants get the training and education they need. It is vital that training facilitates genuine pathways from training and education in these courses into employment. The ultimate goal of CE schemes is to get people back to work. If the schemes are unable to provide the training and education people need, it will seriously curtail the ability of many course participants to get back into employment.

This cut also poses a potential threat to the ability of a number of existing schemes to continue to function. If they cannot provide the funding for insurance, rent or equipment, for example, how will they function and from where will the money come? I can offer the Minister two examples from Waterford city. One is the Saor programme which has 18 CE workers, ten in Waterford city and eight in Clonmel. It provides training, upskilling and educational opportunities to people who are recovering from substance misuse. It does a great deal of good work in the community, linking with drugs awareness and community-based drug projects. The programme's grant for each of the participants will be reduced for €1,500 to €500. The supervisors tell me it will be very hard for them to continue to provide the service this year.

The Compact community scheme in Waterford city operates from Lady Lane House. It has 19 CE workers and provides meals-on-wheels, maintenance work for people who live in sheltered housing and in housing for older people and caretaking work in the community. The scheme is sponsored by the Simon Community and Enable Ireland. The scheme will find it difficult to continue the same level of service this year if these cuts are implemented.

The Minister is aware of this issue and I accept that she has called for a review to assess the impact these cuts will have on the operation of each community employment scheme. I have given her two examples from Waterford city but I am sure she has been given other examples from throughout the country. I hope that, as with the issue of DEIS schools, we will not simply see a review but a complete reversal of the cuts. When one considers that we have massive unemployment, with 445,000 people out of work, and that it is very difficult for people to get into employment in the first place, these schemes are a bridge for many people who have no wish to be unemployed and doing nothing. They want to be able to do something and to contribute.

The Minister will also be aware of what will happen if some of these community employment schemes are unable to provide services such as caretaking, child care, meals on wheels and so forth in the community. Somebody else will have to provide them and potentially at a greater cost to the State. I contend that it makes economic sense and certainly social sense for the Minister to review and, ultimately, reverse this cut and to ensure that every community employment scheme in the country is able to continue. My party advocates that we build on the success of the community employment schemes and ensure we have a greater number of people on the schemes and greater opportunities for people who, unfortunately, because of the jobs crisis in this country, are not able to gain full-time or even part-time employment.