Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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561. To ask the Minister for Social Protection if his attention has been drawn to the fact that his Department is now not referring persons to community employment schemes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41425/16]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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562. To ask the Minister for Social Protection if he values community employment schemes; if there has been a change in policy within his Department to move away from these community employment schemes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41426/16]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 561 and 562 together.

My Department provides a range of activation supports and programmes catering for long-term unemployed jobseekers and those most distant from the labour market. This includes programmes such as Community Employment (CE).

As the Deputy will be aware, CE schemes provide part-time temporary work in their local communities, including opportunities for training and development as a stepping-stone back to employment, for people in receipt of a range of social welfare payments, including those on a long-term jobseeker’s payment.

These schemes help to break the cycle of unemployment and improve a person’s chances of returning to the labour market. My Department is also conscious of the valuable contribution the schemes are making in the provision of services to individuals and communities across Ireland.

The CE Sponsors advertise CE vacancies free-of-charge on the Department's JobsIreland website www.jobsireland.ie.There are currently over 1,000 CE vacancies advertised on the site. Posting vacancies is a relatively simple process and a dedicated video tutorial is available on the site to assist sponsors. Anyone requiring further assistance can contact my Department’s National Contact Centre by phone at Lo Call 1890 800 024 or (01) 248 1398, or by email at jobsireland@welfare.ie.Further enhancements will be made to the way in which CE vacancies are displayed on the site in the coming months.

Jobseekers can view CE vacancies online. Eligible candidates are referred to sponsors by case officers in the local Intreo Centres. My Department continues to refer candidates so I would advise sponsors who may be experiencing particular recruitment difficulties to contact their local DSP office with any concerns they may have in that regard.

With the ongoing welcome reduction in the Live Register, issues such the appropriate level of expenditure, the number of places and the criteria for participation on employment schemes, including CE are all being considered. I hope to be in position to bring a Memo to Government on these matters in the coming weeks. If there are any changes to be made to the CE scheme, consultations with stakeholders will be facilitated.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.