Steven Matthews (Wicklow, Green Party)
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746. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development if grant support is being considered to support community groups including one such group (details supplied) to assist with purchasing electric vehicles to provide transport for sick clients and members to hospital appointments; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8185/23]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Since the CLÁR programme was relaunched in 2016, it has supported a wide range of measures, and funding of over €57 million has been approved for almost 2,100 projects. The programme supports the sustainable development of designated areas which have suffered significant levels of depopulation in the past, with the aim of encouraging people to continue to live and work in those areas.

In 2022 the Programme's Mobility and Cancer Care Transport Measure facilitated the purchase of vehicles by voluntary organisations based in CLÁR areas. This was with a view to facilitating, under the National Cancer Care Programme, transport to designated cancer treatment hospitals/centres. It also facilitated transport to day care or other medical, therapeutic or respite services, including those requiring specialised wheelchair accessible vehicles.

My Department has no record of an application from the community group referred to by the Deputy.

Measures for inclusion in the CLÁR Programme are reviewed each year and are being reviewed again in advance of the next launch of the Programme.