Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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598. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her plans to increase funding to local youth community groups and agencies in Ballymun to 2008 levels at the very least in order to tackle the recent rise in anti-social behaviour and crime linked to crack cocaine; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53356/18]

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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As the Deputy is aware my Department was established in 2011. My Department, along with all government departments, was required to deliver substantial savings on all funding programmes in line with the Comprehensive Review of Expenditure 2012-2014. My Department sought to ensure front line youth services, particularly those for the most vulnerable young people, were protected as far as possible from the impact of the reduction in funding.

I understand that in 2011 Ballymun Regional Youth Service and Poppintree Youth received a combined total of €539,104 in youth funding from my Department. In 2018 these services received youth funding with a combined total of €1,442,794.

In recent years funding for the provision of youth services has been increased on an annual basis.

In 2018 an extra €1.5 million was allocated in current funding to support the provision of youth services which brought the total current youth funding available to my Department to €58 million. The additional funding is being used for programmes that target disadvantaged young people.

My Department has commenced a process to identify service development needs for 2019 and to finalise the 2019 youth funding allocations. The primary purpose of this process is to ensure that youth services are sufficiently resourced to meet the needs of young people and particularly those who are at risk of drugs or alcohol misuse, early school leaving, homelessness or who are living in disadvantaged communities.

In this regard, officials within my Department are currently awaiting the return of completed funding renewal applications on behalf of youth projects throughout the country which are due to be submitted by 21 December 2018. On receipt of these completed renewal applications, my Department will be in a position to finalise the funding allocation which will be provided for each youth project in 2019, having regard to the overall budgetary position. Every effort will be made to complete this process as soon as possible and all youth services will be notified of their allocation at the earliest possible date.