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IN A BID to stamp out crime and help policing, the government pledged €1 million earlier this year to help communities install CCTV in at risk areas.
However, six months on, no applications have been approved by the Department of Justice.
To boost crime prevention, the Partnership of Government commits to supporting investment in CCTV at key locations along the road network and in urban centres.
The installment of cameras was also part of a plan to tackle the persisting problem of illegal dumping.
In April 2017, the then-Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald announced the CCTV scheme would run for three years with funding of €1 million being made available each year.
Local organisations could apply to the department to help meet the costs associated with installing CCTV systems, with the maximum grant available standing at €40,000.
A statement on the grant scheme said:
The number of grants to be awarded is dependent on the number and quality of the applications in the context of the available budget for the scheme.
However, to date, no community or organisation has been successful in their application.
Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan acknowledged that €1 million was secured in Budget 2017 for the purposes of the scheme, adding that it is envisaged that a similar amount will be made available in 2018 and 2019.
He said since the introduction of grant, just five applications have been received. However, no grant aid has been handed over to date.
Due to these applications being incomplete, they were returned to the applicants concerned to enable them to provide the information necessary to qualify for grant-aid, explained the minister.
Fianna Fáil TD for Cavan-Monaghan Brendan Smith urged community groups to apply to the Department of Justice for the new grant aid scheme for CCTV.
““Community groups, particularly those in rural areas, need to be conscious of security measures. However, for many, installing CCTV would be a very expensive measure and has been overlooked. This scheme will provide organisations with funding to cover up to 60% of the cost of a CCTV system, with a maximum grant of €40,000 available,” he said.
The minister said guidance is available to help local groups in both rural and urban areas to apply for this important funding.
However, Smith said he believed groups are simply not aware of the programme.
“CCTV is a very effective means of deterring crime, as well as providing evidence in cases of theft or vandalism.
“I would like to see a more proactive information campaign undertaken by the department,” he added.
Flanagan said he is keen to ensure that groups take full advantage of the availability of the funding.
“I am very conscious of the value that communities, especially rural communities, place on CCTV as a means of deterring crime and assisting in the detection of offenders and I would encourage interested groups to avail of the Scheme,” he added.
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The next general election will be tough too Joan…
They are not helping people get back to work.the only reason the number signing on is lower is because of emigration.i had to leave the country to find work leaving my wife and kids behind.thats one of the hardest things I have ever done or will do.those idiots in the dail sacrifice nothing.we the people take all the hits.
Too true.
“She said the level of social welfare abuse “is relatively low” but that in a budget of €20 billion, even 3 per cent of people abusing it amounts to millions of euro.”
Last week World Bank figures on remittances showed tha Nigerians in Ireland sent back 490 million euros to Nigeria – that’s 26,000 euros for each Nigerian man, woman and child in the State.
However, children are ineligible to work, so the figure is close to 40,000 euros.
But wait, Nigerians also have the highest rate of unemployment in the country than any other group – 45% (Lithuanians are second at 25%) – so the actual figure is more than 55,000 euros sent to Nigeria each year.
Most Nigerians are working in unskilled, low-paid jobs.
Monies sent from Ireland by foreign migrants are three times higher than the amount of money being sent home to Ireland by the Irish abroad.
World Bank statistics show that Irish people living in other countries sent more than $750 million (€560 million) back home in 2011, but foreign workers here sent remittances of $2.4 billion (€1.8 billion) home in the same year.
Wake up, Joan.
Quickly.
I think we’d all have a different outlook to these budgets if those writing them up took a significant pay cut and led by example. I’m talking knocking 80k a year off their wage slips.
Poor Joan, she hasn’t got a clue who is even writing the budget coz it sure isn’t noonan. Wonder if the furer over in Germany is telling her to give all these “exclusive” interviews with the journal?
Why oh why are you giving her airtime. Her village is missing her…..
Labour must finally be looking at the polls. Local elections coming up so they send out Joan the Moan to spew out her usual drivel.
Hell, if you throw enough mud at the wall some of it will stick, or as we’ve witnessed over the past couple of days, if Joan starts commenting on everything, then maybe we’ll actually believe some of this tripe.
At the last General Election I was foolish enough to believe your ‘bile’ & actually gave Joan my first preference vote, a mistake I can gladly say will never happen again. As soon as Labour got into bed with their counterparts in Government, they turned their backs on the very people who voted them in.
In saying that you have done one good thing whilst in power & I thank you for it.
Thank you Joan for showing me the error of my ways. Roll on 2016!!!
What a lot of hot air
Things won’t be tough in her house. An overpaid ministerial salary will make sure of that.
Tough experience Joan? Possibly you should try living as those who your decisions effect for a couple of months. Tough experience my arse. Silly minister.
The rich and wealthy won’t feel the pain, you can count on that!
“Hard decisions and trying to be fair’. .. Roll on the next elections .
.
Ah Aoife my morning was going so well until about 2min ago when I read the headline and then saw the sour frown on Burton.
Let them know how you’s all feel when the next election comes around
Clueless woman.
She is my third favourite Burton.
whats she moaning about sure the lads over in the european comission look after that for them now every body knows that , all you have to do joan is pretend that you have read it when they send it to you and your miserable party … lets be serious she’s not going to feck up her chances of jumping on the Mep gravy train to brussells by disagreeing with next years round of taxing the poor.. VOTE SF
Labour no answers, no solutions, a spent force thats passed it best before date.
Exactly! Hopefully they’ll go the same way the Greens did last time round
Bullshit they have…
She and her colleagues don’t know what tough means – muppets, all of them!
Not a tough experience for you, Joan, insulated as you are from a falling income (or no income) and constantly mounting taxes, levies and “charges”. The tough experience is for the generality of the population and you needn’t try and fool us into thinking you are agonizing over any of the “tough decisions”. How dare you? Your Government have had, admittedly little room for manoevre, but have consistently made the choices which would punish and disadvantage the ordinary working population – and the ‘vulnerable’ about whom you were so vocal in the general election campaign. If you think people are going to overlook that, you have another think coming.
All benefits should be slashed by 50%
Unless you have worked to pay into it
Personally if your long term unemployed 5 yrs or more you should be on side road cleaning in parks working cleaning beach
You should not get benefit for nothing
must be local elections coming up Joan THE MOAN, sure you dont have to worry about money, but dont forget the people dont forget the punishment labour imposed on its voters LIARS
some neck
have your say