2829. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Health the breakdown of the PEACEPLUS funding across the five CAWT projects, including annual allocations and administrative costs; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24471/26]

Minister for Health: PEACEPLUS (2021 – 2027) (€42.6m)

The PEACEPLUS Programme represents the latest phase of CAWT’s cross-border collaboration in the period 2021 -2027, building on more than three decades of successful EU-funded health and social care programmes. Through PEACEPLUS, CAWT has secured grant funding of €42.6m to deliver five major cross-border projects, each focused on prevention, early intervention and improving access to services for people living in border communities. Together, these projects will support over 37,000 beneficiaries and employ more than 145 staff, working in partnership with statutory, voluntary and community organisations across both jurisdictions. These projects are outlined in summary below:

1. The Early Frailty Intervention Project (EFIP) €8.5m

The Early Frailty Intervention Project (EFIP) aims to intervene earlier to help lessen the projected increase in pressures on health and social care services associated with an ageing population. The project will provide 8,803 individuals with screening, assessment, education and community supports to promote a proactive approach to maintaining health and wellbeing. Local community-based EFIP teams will work across four cross-border locations to empower people aged 55+ to maintain independence and manage their health and wellbeing.

2. Healthier Futures (Obesity) €8.6m

he Healthier Futures project aims to develop an integrated, cross-border approach to tackling obesity by supporting 9,000 people to understand and change behaviours, improve diet and increase physical activity. The project includes community-based early intervention programmes and new adult weight-management programmes in Northern Ireland, and new community-based specialist services for children in Ireland. It is focused on reducing health inequalities by targeting disadvantaged groups at greater risk of overweight and obesity.

3. Community Connections & Wellbeing (Adult Mental Health) €9.6m

Community Connections & Wellbeing is a cross-border initiative designed to provide psychosocial support and early intervention to 10,000 adults with mild or emerging mental health difficulties. Delivered through a hub-and-spoke model, the project brings together statutory, voluntary and community sectors to offer low-intensity psychological support, counselling, psychosocial wellbeing programmes, and community-based activities aimed at improving mental health and emotional resilience.

4. Early Intervention Support Youth Hubs (Children & Young People) €7.9m

The Early Intervention Support Youth Hubs project will improve the timeliness, quality and experience of support for 9,000 children and young people with neurodevelopmental needs and their families. The project will provide early intervention through one-to-one consultations, tailored workshops and parenting programmes, as well as personalised supports to promote citizenship and social opportunities. Delivery will take place in partnership with voluntary and community organisations across four cross-border regions.

5. Community Alcohol Detox+ (CAD+) €8m

The Community Alcohol Detox+ project aims to support 1,000 people impacted by alcohol dependence, along with their families and carers. The project will deliver community-based detox and harm-reduction supports, wrap-around care, structured aftercare, and tailored interventions that also address wider social issues such as loneliness, homelessness, poverty and trauma. This person-centred model seeks to reduce alcohol-related harm and promote recovery and wellbeing across Northern Ireland/Ireland border.

The PEACEPLUS funding is the maximum amount of funding available to each project and is claimed by Project Partners on a retrospective basis. Allocations between partners and years are reviewed on a regular basis and a robust regular forecasting process is in place. This reflects the nature of the delivery of these cross border, multi annual projects depending on where expenditure is incurred across the Project Partners during the lifetime of the projects.

Office and administrative costs cover the general administrative expenses or indirect costs of the partner organisation that are necessary for the delivery of project activities. Office and administrative expenditure are budgeted and reported as a 15% flat rate of eligible direct staff costs.

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Dáil Éireann debate. Questions 2838 - Health Service Executive [24481/26]

2838. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Health the plans in place to embed successful CAWT programmes into mainstream HSE services following the conclusion of PEACEPLUS funding; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24481/26]

Minister for Health: Over successive EU Funding periods, the objective is always to use the grant assistance from Cross Border Programmes to develop new services for the border community with a view to integrating the more successful initiatives into mainstream Health supports for the border population. This is a core objective again for the HSE under the PEACEPLUS programme following on from successful mainstreaming of services under the previous Interreg VA Programme.

The five CAWT projects have secured €42.6m in funding support from the PEACEPLUS Programme supporting adult and children’s mental health services, Obesity, Frailty and Alcohol Addictions services. The HSE is working with health authorities in Northern Ireland on a cross-border basis to ensure key initiatives in these areas across the five projects are embedded into core service delivery to border communities over the coming years. Independent evaluation will inform mainstreaming of project work into HSE services, by the operational service management of the HSE.

Mainstreaming of Health & social care services was considered highly successful under Interreg VA with 83% of services mainstreamed across a wide range of areas including population health & wellbeing hubs being subsumed into core health & wellbeing activity in Donegal & Cavan/Monaghan, Community Paramedic services integrated into core delivery within the National Ambulance Service (NAS) as well as Dermatology and Urology services being mainstreamed in the Border region.

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Dáil Éireann debate. Questions 2833 - Cross-border co-operation [24476/26]

2833. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Health the steps being taken to improve access to health services for populations in border regions through CAWT initiatives; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24476/26]

Minister for Health: The Cooperation and Working Together (CAWT) Partnership is a unique structure providing an overarching framework for the planning, management and implementation of cross border health and social care. This partnership was established by the Ballyconnell Agreement in July 1992, and the current partners include:

• Health Service Executive (Ireland).

• Western Health and Social Care Trust (Northern Ireland).

• Southern Health and Social Care Trust (Northern Ireland).

• Department of Health’s Strategic Planning & Performance Group (Northern Ireland).

• Public Health Agency (Northern Ireland).

The core purpose of CAWT is to enhance the health and wellbeing of people living in the border region by improving access to health and social care services within border communities. To achieve this, CAWT partners work collaboratively to identify, develop, and deliver innovative cross-border services and projects that bring tangible benefits to the populations of the border regions.

Over more than three decades, CAWT has established a proven track record in successfully planning, managing, and delivering large-scale cross-border health and social care programmes through successive EU funding streams, including PEACE I and II, INTERREG IIIA, IVA and VA, and now PEACEPLUS. The Partnership has implemented hundreds of innovative cross-border services across acute care, primary and community care, mental health, older people, population health, children’s services, disability, addictions, and health inequalities. These programmes have collectively supported more than 100,000 patients and clients, trained over 40,000 staff and community participants, and enabled over €116.5m of targeted investment across the border region. The depth and range of this experience have strengthened cross-border systems, built clinical and community networks, and ensured that many EU-funded initiatives have transitioned into mainstream service delivery. This strong foundation of collaboration, innovation, and delivery capacity directly underpins the partnership’s current PEACEPLUS programme of work.

The PEACEPLUS Programme represents the latest phase of CAWT’s cross-border collaboration, building on more than three decades of successful EU-funded health and social care programmes. Through PEACEPLUS, CAWT has secured grant funding of €42.6m to deliver five major cross-border projects, each focused on prevention, early intervention and improving access to services for people living in border communities. Together, these projects will support over 37,000 beneficiaries and employ more than 145 staff, working in partnership with statutory, voluntary and community organisations across both jurisdictions. The HSE remain committed to the CAWT Partnership and fully support current and future areas of collaboration with the CAWT partners to improve access to health services for the border population. The HSE is represented on all the governance structures which comprise the CAWT Partnership. The CAWT Partnership continues to focus on tackling health inequalities and promoting social inclusion and working in partnership with the community/voluntary/NGO sector.