Debate contribution: Core Grant Scheme

Debate contribution by Mrs Diane Dodds on 7 April 2025.

MLA

Mrs Diane Dodds

Party at the time

Democratic Unionist Party

Date

7 April 2025

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Committee Business

Heading

Core Grant Scheme

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4891234

Read the official Assembly record

Text

I thank the Minister for coming to the House today for this important motion. I have no doubt, Minister, that, during our discourse, we will hear you talk about pressures on your budget. There may be an odd irony klaxon thrown in for good measure

, although I do not want to steal your thunder. However, budgets are about political choices and what a Department deems appropriate. The cross-party nature of the motion indicates that you are at odds with others in the House on this issue. The core grant has been cut from £3·6 million to £1·8 million. That maintains the cut that was instigated for the past two years. It is a minuscule amount of money in a budget of £8·5 billion. Not to steal my colleague Peter Martin's thunder, he has calculated that that is 0·02% of the budget, but that cut will have real and serious consequences for the voluntary and community sector's ability to deliver to the most vulnerable across our community. I will be clear: I am not querying the awards that have already been made. They are important, and I wish those organisations every success for the future. I have, however, met organisations that receive no funding at all, and they all talk about their ability to deliver core services. For example, Relate indicated to me that 40% of its referrals come from the statutory sector — GPs and others — yet its exclusion from the core grant scheme will have an impact on staff and the ability to deliver on those core services and the agenda of shifting left. It would be interesting to know, Minister, whether you have any data on that aspect of the issue: what will be the impact of defunding all those core services on that policy intent? I understand that you fund the delivery of programmes through the voluntary and community sector. That is not what we are talking about. We are talking about organisations' need for staff to work through the administration of programmes. Simply allowing those organisations to go under or reduce services certainly will not help the Department to deliver for people. I note, Minister, that, in a written response to my colleague Paul Frew, you indicated that you were committed to increasing the budget for the core grant scheme. I ask you, in your response, to expand on that. I recently got the equality impact assessment (EQIA). When we asked what equality impact assessment had been done, you indicated that you did not do one on the new scheme. However, the previous decision to cut funding was put through an equality impact assessment. Your letter stated that that recognised:

"that the cost reduction measures may have a differential impact on section 75 categories."

I would like to understand, as would the House, why there was no screening exercise on the new programme and the new design and on the decision to maintain a cut that is obviously so damaging. I will say a few words about the way in which the Department considers the voluntary and community sector. In his report, Professor Bengoa said:

"the HSC should continue to work in partnership across government, with industry, academia, the community and voluntary sector, staff and patients to deliver new models of care."

One of the more advanced descriptions of the voluntary sector's role is contained in our current mental health strategy. Action 17 is:

"Fully integrate community and voluntary sector in mental health service delivery with a lifespan approach including the development of a protocol to make maximum use of the sector's expertise."

It is difficult, Minister, to see how those ambitions, which are publicly accepted and part of your Department's documents, will be fulfilled if this kind of funding is continued. We make substantial —

I will. We make substantial use of the voluntary and community sector. I ask you, Minister, to look at that relationship and perhaps at longer-term contracts and better arrangements.

661 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not flagged

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Assessed 21 October 2026 at 12:20 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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