Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent)
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148. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the funding provided to the Irish Youth Justice Service in 2013; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49627/13]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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The Irish Youth Justice Service (IYJS) operates across my Department and the Department of Children and Youth Affairs and is staffed by officials from both Departments. The Minister for Children and Youth Affairs has responsibility for the Children Detention Schools and the associated budget. As Minister for Justice and Equality, I have responsibility for the Community Programmes Unit of IYJS. The IYJS Community Programmes Unit has responsibility for policy advice on youth crime prevention, diversion and community sanctions. It is in also responsible for the oversight and funding of Youth Justice Community Programmes. It works closely with An Garda Síochána, the Probation Service and community based organisations.

The 2013 budget for Youth Justice Community Programmes is €17.222 million. This is made up of €465,000 for IYJS administration costs and €16.757 million for community based projects. These projects include 100 Garda Youth Diversion Projects (GYDPs) nationwide, 18 Young Persons Probation community projects and 5 Local Drug Task Force (LDTF) projects. Tackling youth crime is a key priority of Government and I am committed to continuing support for these projects which play an important role in supporting the diversion of young people from the criminal justice system and in offering an alternative to custody.