Seán Canney (Galway East, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection, Deputy Regina Doherty, is overseeing an interdepartmental review of the CE scheme. I believe that if a person aged 55 or over is on a scheme, he or she should be left on it because of his or her chances of getting employment. We should target jobs for younger people. I am a great believer in the rural social scheme and I have worked hard to get more numbers into it. It is not, however, a training scheme so we cannot give money under a job activation programme. It is a social inclusion scheme, it is brilliant and we need to support it. One can find something that is not right in any scheme and we are reviewing the CE scheme to see how we can do it better.

Senator Boyhan said we were not giving enough money while Senator Daly said we were giving too much. Perhaps we will split the difference. If public money is spent, there has to be a strategy and a way to measure outcomes. We cannot just throw money at projects. Senator Hopkins mentioned an enterprise centre in Ballinasloe. We often think about constructing the buildings and we put a great deal of energy into that. When we have done it, however, we do not look at how we are going to manage and sustain what we have built. Sometimes we do not look at that before we start. We talk about sustainable projects. A project is not sustainable if the building is completed but is not full within a certain period. We must work on that.

Senator Lombard referred to villages. When I drive around big and small towns, I also count the houses that are abandoned. We do not need planning permission, we just need to renovate the houses and put families in there. That would be doing something right. We recognise that within the Department and we have created a living town centre project. We have a pilot scheme whereby we picked six towns and we have allocated funding to local organisations to come up with plans for those towns. They will probably come back with six different ways of doing what they need to do because the circumstances are different. The assets in the towns could be different and the outcomes could vary. We are providing money to these organisations to allow them to draw up their plans. If those plans are workable and sustainable, we can put them forward for consideration under the rural regeneration fund and bring them to fruition. There is a recognition of what has been said and more joined-up thinking is required to ensure progress.

Senator Lombard also referred to Joe Gavin and others who were involved in the CPO. There is the stick and there is the carrot. We are offering a carrot to get people involved and to try to create something different. I think we will achieve that.

I have seen at first hand how effective the seniors alert scheme has been. Senator Byrne referred to a project in Limerick. The one thing about that project is that is that it is multi-use. In that context, Senator Higgins spoke about arts centres and sports centres. My view is that we should have one building that is multi-use. For example, we have a network of libraries around the country and we are now rolling out digitalisation in them. We also have what is called the open library where one can visit a library from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., 365 days a year. Libraries can also be used for other purposes. We must do more of that. We are doing some positive things.

All of the schemes are under review at any time to ensure that we do not just think we are doing something right but that we look at the outcomes. Changes were made to LEADER funding last year to make sure the operation of the scheme and the application process was streamlined. That has worked but it will be under review again. When I say it has worked, what I mean is that more applications are coming in but the funding must be allocated. We have three years following the closure of the scheme to spend all the money. We are putting pressure on the LAGs to ensure that the money is spent.

It is great to get an input from people who are working in communities, rural or urban, and who understand what is going on. I thank Senators for their input. I am delighted to have the opportunity to talk to them.

We talk about all that we are doing, but we face a profound challenge in the form of Brexit. I am conscious that those who may be affected most by it are rural communities or communities that are in disadvantaged areas. It is a bigger challenge for us in our Department than for other Departments and that is something we must bear in mind. We are working hard to minimise the potential negative effect of a no-deal Brexit but it is imperative that we continue to cultivate resilience, which we have in the communities, and to nurture the volunteerism that exists and to encourage it further.

Building resilience and cohesion among communities in a strategic manner is our best way to ensure sustainable development throughout the country. We talked about regional development, but I call it balanced development. I chair the task force relating to the Atlantic economic corridor and we will create a counterbalance. Broadband is an issue we discussed this morning. One of the guests at the meeting stated that broadband is not an inhibitor to working in rural communities because many people can work from a hub within a town or village even if they cannot work from home. That would be a big draw to keep people living locally, working locally and adding to the economy as well as having a better quality of life rather than spending two or three hours in a car travelling to work every day.

We must be positive about what we are doing. The Department is new, it is positive and it is showing its mettle. I am delighted to be working with the Minister, Deputy Ring. I compliment the Minister of State, Deputy Kyne, who was in the Department prior to me on all the work he did. The officials in the Department are also up for the challenge. I am lucky and privileged to work with such a great bunch of people. I again thank Senators for their contributions.