Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Question 85: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment her views on moving community employment schemes out of the remit of FÁS and into local government; the reforms of FÁS structures and activities she is considering; her further views on whether FÁS is fully capable in dealing with the unemployment crises; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [19925/09]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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As the State's Training and Employment Authority, FÁS is charged with the sole responsibility for the overall management of the Community Employment (CE) programme on a national basis. Launched in 1994, the main objective of CE can be summarised as providing project-based work experience and personalised training for long-term unemployed and socially excluded persons in order to progress them into employment. It has a secondary benefit in providing economic and social benefits to local communities. It is the largest single human resource intervention undertaken by FÁS.

CE is operated as an active labour market programme designed to provide eligible long term unemployed people and other disadvantaged persons (including those with a disability) with an opportunity to engage in useful work within their communities on a fixed-term basis. The programme is structured to help unemployed people to re-enter the active workforce by breaking their experience of unemployment through a return to work routine and to assist them to enhance/develop both their technical and personal skills.

FÁS has very successfully run this programme since its inception in 1994, assisting tens of thousands of clients into gainful employment or further training/education over this period. FÁS has built up considerable expertise in this field and has been continually improving the systems around the programme, such as the introduction of the Individual Learner Plan system for all participants in 2006. Training modules on CE are now certified and on the National Framework of Qualifications. For many participants this represents a major milestone in their personal development and/or skills acquisition as it is the first time they will have received any formal recognition for their learning.

The operational aspects of the CE programme are managed by the 8 FÁS Regions, with an overall policy-making arm covering the formulation of national policies/procedures regarding the programme.

I have no plans to transfer the CE function to the Local Authorities.

With regard to reform of FÁS structures and activities, the situation is kept under review to ensure FÁS can respond to the economic challenges facing the country.

I am confident that FÁS is capable of responding to the unemployment crisis we are currently facing. To date it has been fully responsive and progressive in adapting the new activation measures I have announced since the start of the year. For instance as a result of efficiencies and a redeployment of resources announced in the Supplementary Budget, my Department is now funding approximately 128,000 activation training and work experience places through FÁS. This is a substantial increase on the 66,000 places, which were available at the end of last year.

Part of this increase in provision has been achieved as FÁS has re-aligned its focus to provide a more flexible delivery of training interventions for individuals to include online, evening and blended learning training options in addition to the more traditional mix of course offerings. The aim of these additional training places is to offer increased flexibility and flexible learning options to enable the unemployed to further develop their skill-sets and competencies to secure employment as soon as possible.

In total in the Supplementary Budget €128m was redeployed to the activation area, which is resulting in the creation of 23,435 training and education activation places across my Department, the Department of Social and Family Affairs and the Department of Education and Science.

Included in the Supplementary Budget are specific new innovative measures such as a work experience scheme, which will provide 2,000 six-month places to individuals who are unemployed, and it will include the placement of graduates. A new training programme of 277 places at a cost of €1m is being introduced for sustaining vulnerable employment - under this programme 277 workers who are on a three-day week and receiving social welfare payments for the days they are not working will receive 2 days training a week for a period of a year.

My Department has established a Working Group consisting of the relevant Government Departments and State Agencies including FÁS to oversee the implementation of these schemes. FÁS has played a positive and active role in these discussions and will continue to do so in relation to our response to the unemployment challenge.