Joint Committee on Social Protection, Community and Rural Development and the Islands publishes Pre-Budget Submissions

The Joint Committee for Social Protection, Community and Rural Development and the Islands have published its pre-budget to the Minister for Rural and Community Development to assist in their deliberations during negotiations on Budget 2025.

The Committee publishes its report alongside a similar report submitted to the Minister for Social Protection.

Read the pre-budget submission in full here.

Committee Cathaoirleach Deputy Denis Naughten said: "A key focus for the Committee for Budget 2025 is community supports, rural transport and the Islands. During its examination of these issues, the Committee placed a public call for submissions and received 9 submissions from interested organisations and individuals, and on that note, would like to thank everyone who made a submission to the Committee."

"Based on this, the Committee have made 9 priority recommendations and are committed to ensuring that these are implemented to ensure the continued development of rural Ireland and local communities through Budget 2025."

"The Committee recommends that Budget 2025 is rural proofed and contain a commitment to regional equity comprising of economic, social and environmental pillars of sustainability to utilise their potential and adapt to current and future challenges."

The Joint Committee will continue to engage with both the Minister and the Department of Rural and Community Development and seek regular updates on the implementation of the recommendations set out in this report.

The Committee have proposed 9 recommendations for the Minister for Rural and Community Development, after receiving and evaluating 9 public submissions. Through these recommendations, the Committee aims to highlight community support, rural transport, and the Islands.

The recommendations include:

• The Committee recommends that €15 million/annum be put in place to provide direct funding for major and minor capital development works on the islands as well as providing funding to co-finance or provide leverage funding with other State bodies and local authorities in providing vital infrastructure on the islands. This would help islands overcome the delay in prioritising projects due to cost benefit analysis favouring projects on the mainland. Such a policy in relation to health facilities, sports and community facilities, playgrounds, water, power as well as roads and piers, coastal erosion made a significant difference in the past.

• The Committee recommends an allocation of €6.5m to cover increases to current core funding and increases to the minimum wage in Community Services Programmes (CSPs) working towards the Living Wage. The Committee also recommends that the CSP Scheme be expanded substantially to provide extra places to promote social enterprise amongst communities.

• The Committee recommends that the CSP scheme revert in 2025 to the system whereby the state fully reimbursed groups for the cost of the minimum wage and employers PRSI for participants.

• The Committee recommends that the Department of Rural and Community Development seeks funding for community development supports for the Deaf community as a linguistic minority. The Irish Deaf Society ask that the Department would meet and support IDS to engage with funding and grants available to meet this purpose.

• The Committee recommends an additional allocation of €3m in Budget 2025 into Public Participation Networks (PPN) to support capacity building and meaningful engagement with policy structures at local level since the local elections.

• The Committee recommends an allocation of €50m in Budget 2025 into the Community and Voluntary sector, to include pay increases for the sector.

• The Committee recommends the provision of significant investment in services to expand on the ferry and air services it already provides to islands and to ensure those services are viable and accessible to people with disabilities.

• The Committee recommends the increase over two years to €20m in the funding for the CLAR programme with new schemes being initiated to co-fund with the relevant Departments the provision of basic infrastructure including water to houses, village sewerage schemes, extra funding for LIS Roads etc.

• The Committee recommends the initiation of a new scheme to fund the provision of Solar Panels on Community Centres in 2025.

The Committee has undertaken detailed Pre-Budget Scrutiny and would seek for the Minister to report back to the Committee on implementation of the recommendations contained within this report.