On the web relating to Alignment

REPORTS, ANALYSIS, RESPONSES

The following are links to 30 or so online news reports, academic articles and Government papers. Along with our own sources and a review or Oireachtas debates, they helped inform 'Changing Ireland's reportage on local government reform and the debate around 'alignment':

Alignment in more detail: The role and functions of Socio-Economic Committees

Representation on the Socio-Economic Committees (SEC) and their terms of reference are currently the subject of discussion. Currently, this is what is envisaged.

Minister Hogan on ‘Putting People First’

Late last year, Taoiseach Enda Kenny and Minister Phil Hogan launched ‘Putting People First’ describing it as “one of the most radical, ambitious and far-reaching governance reform plans ever put forward by an Irish Government.”

“On the cusp of a huge opportunity” Interview with: Ryan Howard in Brussels

Ryan Howard

By Allen Meagher

“We’re standing on the cusp of a huge opportunity here,” claims Ryan Howard, talking about Ireland’s potential to unlock EU funds for communities from 2014 onwards.

From 18 months time, the European Commission (EC) proposes just one “programming tool” for all structural funds.

In doing so, the EC has given official recognition and backing to a process knows as Community-Led Local Development (CLLD) and Ireland is better prepared than most to make use of the funding that’s been earmarked.

For a country to have access – by the hundreds of million – it needs to have a network of local action groups in place to channel the funding.

Leading the field, Ireland already has a national network in place, namely the Local and Community Development Programme (LCDP).

Seanad Debate - Opposition divided over “alignment”

Minister Phil Hogan (FG)

Minister Phil Hogan addressed the issue of “aligning” the local development sector with local government in the Seanad on November 9th.

 
The Local and Community Development Programme is, Hogan said, “a key social inclusion intervention” in tackling poverty and exclusion through partnership between the government and disadvantaged communities. 

He continued: “The programme is more relevant than ever, given the current economic crisis and the level of unemployment.”

Dail Report - Two Day Debate over community sector

Sinn Fein's Brian Stanley

On October 11th and 12th, the Dail debated the work of the voluntary and community sector, prompted by a motion from Laois-Offaly TD Brian Stanley (SF).

The motion, which ran to two pages, called for the sector to be recognised, and in particular for the Government “to establish an All-Ireland Consultative Civic Forum promised by the Good Friday Agreement, which would enable communities to engage with others across civic society and across the country and share information, learning and best practice on an all-Ireland basis.”

High five looking at alignment of local govt & local development sector

Jim Miley

Five people were appointed by Minister Phil Hogan to a high level steering group in September to look at how a closer alignment between local government and the local development sector would work.

The five were chosen on the basis of their experience and considerable knowledge of both the Local Government and Local Development sectors, said the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government. They are:

Jim Miley (pictured) - former chairperson of Concern Worldwide, founder of myhome.ie and former secretary general of Fine Gael (in the late ‘90s). He was once a broadcaster and also served in the past as chief executive of Dublin City Chamber of Commerce. Mr Miley will chair the steering group.

Geraldine Tallon - secretary general of the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government

Gerry Kearney – former secretary general of the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs 

Dr. Patricia O’Hara – regional policy expert with professorial duties at the National Institute for Regional Spatial Analysis in Maynooth

Liam Keane - former regional co-ordinator of HSE South.

Martina Moloney - Galway County Manager.

Pobal to continue, despite pre-election talk of closure

Pobal looks likely to continue to be supported by the Government, despite pre-election talk of closure, Minister Phil Hogan has indicated to 'Changing Ireland'.

The Government agency was listed as one of the 145 so-called "quangos" that the State could do without, with Fine Gael proposing the takeover of its functions by local authorities. The body handled €377m of national and EU funding in 2007 and is responsible for managing a range of community-related Government programmes.

Recently, 'Changing Ireland' asked Minister Phil Hogan about Pobal's future.

Minister Hogan pointed out that it was a matter for Government and not for he alone to decide:

“While it is possible that the services provided by Pobal could be provided internally by my Department or other Departments, it is unlikely that significant savings would arise given that staff resources would need to be redeployed, systems would require development and the necessary expertise in providing advice to the sectors concerned may not be readily available. 

“Additionally, because Pobal delivers funding on behalf of a number of Departments involved in supporting services in the not-for-profit, community and voluntary sectors, the Company is in a unique position to bring considerable value-added because of its comprehensive knowledge of the sectors.  The central administration and integration of services offered by the Company across the various programmes and the fact that the same staff work on a number of programmes are considerable strengths which would not be easily replicated if Departments separately implemented programmes.”

'Changing Ireland' also asked about €750,000 which was recently cut from Pobal’s budget to manage the Dormant Accounts Fund. We asked was this re-distributed to community initiatives or sent to ‘Brussels’?

The Minister replied that “efficiency are retained as savings (and) are not redistributed.”

How do partners claim credit for community work in the LCDP?

'Changing Ireland' recently put a question to Minister Phil Hogan to end debate between projects that co-operate on a piece of work, but need clear direction on who claims the credit.

Q:        The evaluation reports for LCDP work don’t allow two companies/projects who collaborate to both claim involvement. Sometimes the minor partner gets the credit, while the lead partner looks like they're sitting on their hands. Can you fix this? (E.g Where someone is supported/directed onto a training course).

A:         If two groups collaborate to provide supports to one person under the LCDP, it is quite valid for both of them to claim credit for their own part of the work. 

What should happen is that both clearly define the supports they provide and report this – the reporting systems allow this. Thus, if one group works with a client to provide them with training, and another then helps the client in job searches and with interviews, both can and should report this. 

If that results in a person getting a job, for example, the role that the LCDP played can be captured not as a person progressing into employment but that the LCDP made that individual better prepared for the labour market - which is a high priority outcome of the LCDP. 

Equally, if two groups come together to offer training, they can both record and claim their work and successes. What should not happen is that both groups record themselves as completing all of the work. 

For example, if two groups co-operate on training 10 people to gain a certificate, we cannot have each of them claim full credit, with a total claim made that 20 people were trained to certificate level – rather the groups must have broken down the work and claimed the proportion of the outputs associated with the actual work they provided.