Clare Daly (Dublin North, Socialist Party)
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Question 193: To ask the Minister for Social Protection if she will address the anomaly whereby persons are prevented from taking up employment in programmes such as the Tús Programme operated by Fingal County Council if they have engaged in short-term work administered by FÁS, but are still unemployed, especially in relation to one particular case (details supplied). [12540/11]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Tús is a community work placement initiative which will provide up to 5,000 short-term, quality work opportunities for those who are unemployed for more than a year. Some €30 million has been provided in the Department's Estimates in 2011 to fund the roll-out of the initiative. This initiative is delivery via the network of local development companies and Údarás na Gaeltachta in Gaeltacht areas. Participants will, in the first instance, be identified by the Department of Social Protection by applying the following conditions: a person must be unemployed and in receipt of a jobseeker's payment for at least 12 months; currently be in receipt of jobseekers allowance; and be fully unemployed.

The purpose of Tús is to focus on those people who are long-term unemployed. For this reason, eligibility is at present confined to those on the Live Register for 12 months and in receipt of jobseeker's allowance. These provisions are to ensure a targeted approach to those currently affected by long-term unemployment. I have noted the circumstances identified by the Deputy in this instance. However, given the current recruitment process to supervisory/team leader positions advertised by the local development companies, it is not open to me to vary the eligibility criteria at this time.