Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Labour)
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Question 78: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if her attention has been drawn to the fact that the CE scheme is struggling to recruit staff; and if she will change the qualifying criteria for participation in CE schemes to ensure that those wishing to avail of them may do so when a significant number of vacancies exist and qualifying periods take into consideration time spent out of the workforce as a qualified adult or otherwise. [31850/08]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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Community employment is an active labour market programme designed to give eligible long-term unemployed people and other disadvantaged people, including those with a disability, an opportunity to engage in useful work within their communities on a fixed-term basis. The qualifying criteria for participation are intended to facilitate the movement of participants through community employment, allowing new participants who may not otherwise have such an opportunity to avail of the programme. Qualified adult dependents of people in receipt of a disability-linked social welfare payment are ineligible for community employment under the eligibility criteria. However, a person in receipt of widow's contributory pension is eligible to participate if he or she has been in receipt of the payment for 12 months or more.