Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Question 67: To ask the Minister for Social Protection the payments which she makes to persons placed on community employment schemes; their entitlements to social welfare benefits while on placement; if she has any plans to reform these payments; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31732/11]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Community employment helps long-term unemployed people to re-enter the active workforce by breaking their experience of unemployment through a return to work routine. The focus of CE is on developing technical and personal skills to enable a person to return to the open labour market. Persons engaged are provided with work and training placements of 191⁄2 hours duration per week with a not-for-profit community sponsor delivering local services.

The payment rates on community employment (CE) are related to the underlying value of certain social protection payments plus €20 per week. In addition, a participant may be eligible, where appropriate, for payments in respect of any qualified dependant adult and children. In the case of some categories of social protection payments, earnings from CE or from work will be taken into account in determining the value of the social protection payment retained. Secondary benefits are protected during a participant's engagement on CE with individual circumstances taken into account in determining continuing eligibility.

Details for each social protection payment are summarised in the following table. I have indicated that I wish to consider the operation of CE and other employment support initiatives with a view to ensuring the effectiveness of these in progressing people back to work or to further training or education.