Denise Mitchell (Dublin Bay North, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

165. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government his plans to compensate for the cessation of the Ballymun social regeneration fund in 2017. [18352/16]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

While investment in the physical regeneration of Ballymun is largely complete, my Department has been continuing to support certain social and economic interventions in Ballymun with funding allocated on the basis of agreed annual work programmes. An allocation of €1.7million is available for these social regeneration initiatives in the Ballymun area for 2016. My Department will be continuing to engage with Dublin City Council regarding the position of such initiatives from 2017 onwards.

Other funding for the Ballymun area from my Department comes via the Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP), where the allocation to the Ballymun, Whitehall and Tolka area this year is €1.5 million. SICAP is an important community-focussed programme with the aims of reducing poverty and of promoting social inclusion and equality through local, regional and national engagement and collaboration. It is a key priority of Government and its vision is to improve the life chances and opportunities of those who are marginalised in society, living in poverty or in unemployment through community development approaches, targeted supports and interagency collaboration, where the values of equality and inclusion are promoted and human rights are respected.