Home > Dail Eireann debate. Financial resolution no.2: General (resumed) (continued).

[Oireachtas] Dail Eireann debate. Financial resolution no.2: General (resumed) (continued). (13 Oct 2016)

External website: https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/debates/debate/dail/2...


…..Minister of State at the Department of Health (Deputy Catherine Byrne):  I welcome the €3 million being provided to support drug and social inclusion measures in 2017. This will bring the total funding available to the HSE for social inclusion services to over €131 million. The Department also provides more than €6 million for drugs and local task forces. The additional funding announced in the budget will enable the HSE to continue to provide initiatives aimed at improving the health outcomes of the most vulnerable in our society, including those affected by addiction issues, those experiencing homelessness, Travellers and the Roma community, asylum seekers and refugees. It will also help to fund the national drugs strategy, the pilot supervised injection facility, services for young people under 18 years and detoxification beds for adults. The Government, in providing this €3 million, is committed to a health-led response to the drug problem.

 

Other areas that come within my remit are housing and homelessness. I welcome the €42.4 million being provided for the social inclusion and community activation programme, SICAP, through which approximately 45,000 people will receive direct one-to-one labour market training and support, 2,800 local community groups will be assisted, 20,000 individuals will receive educational support and 25,000 individuals will receive employment support. I am delighted to announce that €2 million is being made available for the roll-out of a new community development scheme which will be targeted at disadvantaged urban and rural areas and fund projects that seek to enhance communities, address disadvantage and improve social services at local level. My experience during the years has been that very often community groups require small levels of funding to build capacity and get projects off the ground. I hope the new scheme will be the starting block to enable communities that do not often receive funding to begin some work on the ground……

 

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