Mark Ward (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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195. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the status of plans to redirect money and assets seized by the Criminal Assets Bureau back into the community; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8715/22]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy will be aware, Budget 2022 provides for the establishment of the new Community Safety Innovation Fund. It is intended that this fund will support investment in projects which will improve community safety. The fund, which is expected to grow in the coming years, will have an initial outlay in 2022 of €2m.

It is important to note that the assets seized by the Criminal Assets Bureau are not surrendered to the Exchequer immediately. Under the Proceeds of Crime Acts, a court determination is required and a period of at least seven years must elapse before disposal of any asset for the benefit of the Exchequer. This time limit may be reduced if both parties consent, however, it is often the case that legal challenges increase the time between seizure and disposal. Further challenges are presented by virtual assets, such as cryptocurrency, that are not tied to a physical location.

We must also recognise that seizures by CAB fluctuate. To tie the fund to the geographic area where the assets were seized would not provide a stable, steady, funding source. In addition, some CAB targets primarily operate in different areas to those in which they reside.

With that in mind, money will be provided to the Community Safety Innovation Fund from the Central Fund of the Exchequer. This will allow projects to apply for funding that is available regardless of the area they operate in or the level of seizures by CAB in their locale.

A call for funding proposals will issue shortly seeking applications for community safety projects and similar initiatives from bodies involved in community safety, such as the new Local Community Safety Partnerships – pilots of which are in place in North Inner City Dublin, Waterford and Longford – and the Drogheda Implementation Board, as well as similar entities nationwide.

Applications will be assessed against stated criteria outlined in the call for proposals to ensure funding is allocated to encourage innovative ways to improve community safety from applicants who understand local community safety needs best.

These criteria for allocating funding are now finalised, with the fund due to be launched imminently.