Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

504. To ask the Minister for Social Protection if he is aware of the dispute between the Citizens Information Board and Limerick Money Advice and Budgeting Service, MABS, resulting in the withdrawal of funding and threatening the service delivery to MABS (details supplied); if he will intervene to resolve this dispute as soon as possible and fully restore the funding to Limerick MABS; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13431/16]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The Money Advice and Budgeting Service (MABS), which operates under the aegis of the Citizens Information Board (CIB), provides assistance to people who are over indebted and need help and advice in coping with their debt problems. CIB has been allocated state funding of €50 million for 2016, of which €20.6 million is allocated to the network of MABS companies. The Chief Executive Officer of CIB is the Accounting Officer for budgets distributed to each individual MABS company. As such, the CEO is required to comply with strictures that are imposed in the provision of that funding and to satisfy themselves of the propriety of the actual expenditure by each MABS company, in keeping with requirements of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General. These requirements are set out in service agreements with each individual MABS company and cover standard items including service delivery, governance, financial controls, Human Resource practices, reporting, evaluation and monitoring.

The funding allocation for Limerick MABS for 2016 amounts to €376,545. So far this year, Limerick MABS has received €94,136. Unfortunately, Limerick MABS is not in compliance with its service agreement. For this reason, CIB has suspended further funding and has sought a plan from Limerick MABS setting out how it intends to comply with the terms of its agreement.

Engagement is currently ongoing between CIB and Limerick MABS to resolve the matter so that funding can be restored to Limerick MABS as soon as possible.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.