Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

442. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if a reply will issue to an organisation (details supplied) regarding the refusal of a scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6064/20]

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

All applications for funding under the 2019 European Social Fund (“ESF”) Programme for Employability, Inclusion and Learning (“PEIL”) Gender Equality Call for Proposals are subject to a rigorous assessment and moderation process by the Department of Justice and Equality. This also includes the involvement of subject matter experts on the Project Appraisal Committee. 

Applications made under the Scheme were screened to ensure they passed an initial completeness check, that is, that they were submitted on time, complete, and met the criteria. Applications passing this check were then subject to assessment regarding the ‘Capacity of Applicant’. Only applications that were ‘selected’ under this criterion were then appraised under the assessment criteria as set out in the ‘Information and Guidance for Applicants’ document published at the launch of the Call.

In 2019 the Department received 39 applications for funding under this scheme, seeking €20.6m of grant funding in total. The available funding was €5.5m, which inevitably meant that some good proposals were not awarded grant funding, while others did not receive the full amount sought.

Organisations that applied for funding under this project received a feedback sheet summarising the assessment of their application by the Department of Justice and Equality. I am informed that the organisation referred to in the Deputy’s question received feedback on its application for funding from the Department on 2 October 2019, and that the Department has not been made aware of any outstanding requests for additional feedback or unanswered queries in the interim.