Written answers

Tuesday, 20 June 2017

Department of Social Protection

Community Services Programme

Photo of Willie O'DeaWillie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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2103. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full year cost of increasing the contribution to the community services programme to match the national minimum wage; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28868/17]

Photo of Regina DohertyRegina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The Community Services Programme (CSP) provides financial support to community companies that provide revenue generating services of a social inclusion nature. Many of these companies are also funded from other sources and generate revenue from the public use of their facilities and services.

The additional programme cost involved in increasing the CSP contribution to match the minimum wage would be approximately €1.9m over a full year.

The funding provided to service providers under the CSP is expressed as a fixed annual co-funding contribution towards the costs of employing a manager or a specified number of full-time equivalent positions. The rate of CSP contribution is not aligned to the minimum wage rate of payment.

A support fund was put in place in 2016 to assist existing funded companies who are not in a position to cover the increase in the minimum wage. Funded companies were invited to apply for this fund which operates on the basis of a reducing allocation over a 3 year period between 2016 and 2018.

I understand that approximately 84% of funded companies paid their staff above the minimum wage in 2016.

I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

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