Willie Penrose (Longford-Westmeath, Labour)
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45. To ask the Minister for Social Protection his plans to centralise the provision of insurance for community employment schemes within his Department to reduce the costs for sponsors and schemes. [25841/17]

Willie Penrose (Longford-Westmeath, Labour)
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97. To ask the Minister for Social Protection his plans to improve supports for the sponsors of community employment schemes; his further plans to increase the materials budget for community employment schemes, in view of rising insurance and other costs; and the way in which he plans to address cash flow issues for schemes. [25838/17]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 45 and 97 together.

The annual budget provided to Community Employment (CE) schemes includes an amount to cover consumable services and materials, including insurance, necessary for the effective operation of the project.

My Department has become aware in recent times of an increase in insurance premiums for CE schemes. The main reasons cited for this is an increase in claims frequency over recent years by such schemes. In the first instance, my Department recommends that schemes seek alternative quotes to ensure they get value for money. In this context, schemes are asked to be especially mindful of their obligations under the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005.

The responsibility for insurance for CE schemes rests with the CE sponsoring organisation (the legal employer). The CE Sponsor is responsible for ensuring that all relevant health and safety requirements are adhered to.

Each CE sponsoring body is an independent contractor for all purposes and, in these circumstances, it is not possible for the Department to become an insurance agent for all schemes.

Insurance premium costs are reimbursed from the CE materials budget for the scheme. While the Department is not in a position to allocate additional monies to the materials budget in 2017, if there is a scheme experiencing particular difficulties, the sponsor should contact their local DSP office and the matter will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

The capacity to provide for any general increase in the materials budget will be examined as part of the annual budgetary process.

I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.