Willie Penrose (Longford-Westmeath, Labour)
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328. To ask the Minister for Social Protection his views on a review of eligibility conditions for participation in community employment schemes with a view to shortening the duration which a person has to be in receipt of a jobseeker's payment in order to qualify (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6125/17]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy is aware, Community Employment (CE) is a labour market activation programme which helps long-term unemployed people (those 12-months or more in receipt of a jobseeker’s payment) and other disadvantaged groups to re-enter the active workforce by breaking their experience of unemployment through a return to work routine. The programme assists participants to enhance and develop skills which can then be used in the workplace.

A substantial number of people who sign on to the Live Register exit it again within a short-time frame, without any recourse to employment schemes or intensive activation measures. Accordingly, it is considered appropriate that CE schemes should remain focused on those who are long-term unemployed.

Furthermore, the Department has a range of other interventions and activation measures targeted at assisting the newly unemployed return to work. This includes support from Intreo case officers who, amongst other things, provide advice on job-search activities and the use of online job search tools.

With the ongoing welcome reductions in the Live Register, the Deputy will appreciate that issues such as the appropriate level of expenditure, the number of places and the criteria for participation on employment schemes will all need to be considered. I hope to bring a Memo for Government in the coming weeks about these matters. If there are changes to be made, consultations with stakeholders will be facilitated.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.