Tom Neville (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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494. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if she will address a matter (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [52602/17]

Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The person in question has participated on CE since 2011 and reached his six year lifetime limit in November 2017. He was then referred to JobPath for activation support and he is currently engaging with his JobPath provider who will support and assist him to look for a full time sustainable job. Participants with JobPath, who are all long-term unemployed jobseekers, receive intensive individual support to help them overcome barriers to employment and to find jobs. Each person is assigned a personal advisor who assesses their skills, experience, challenges and work goals, including those skills gained with CE and other schemes for the purpose of agreeing a personal progression plan (PPP). The PPP contains a schedule of activities to assist the person to find employment, this may relevant training and educational programmes and there are no barriers to any participants pursuing employment focussed training.

In the event that the person concerned does not find sustainable employment, he may be eligible to again participate on CE under the pilot initiative which enables those aged 62 or over to extend their participation beyond the 6 year participation limit. This initiative enables participants over 62 years to participate up to the state pension age, subject to satisfying the conditions of satisfactory performance on the scheme and to annual approval by the Department.

I am confident the person concerned will benefit from participation with JobPath and would encourage him to continue to engage with the service.