Millions of euro seized from criminals to fund community projects

Ottoline Spearman

Over €4 million seized by gardaí and the Criminal Assets Bureau has been made available for community projects.

The Community Asset fund will allocate 42 community projects between €20,000 and €150,000 each to implement a project on themes including community safety and rehabilitation for people who have served time in prison.

There are six nationwide projects, with 12 projects in Dublin, four in Cork, and the remainder in several other counties including Donegal, Kerry, Limerick and Waterford.

Fianna Fáil spokesperson for Dublin, Senator Mary Fitzpatrick, is a founding director of Cabra for Youth, based in Dublin. Speaking on Newstalk, she said the organisation has received a grant of €50,000 to "drive a peer-led program that will help young people to address issues in the community and increase community safety".

The Community Safety Fund began in 2022 and has since funded 127 community projects.

When the project launched, former Minister for Justice and current Minister for Education and Youth told the Irish Times: "By putting this money back into the community, we can show that there is a direct link between the activities of law enforcement and improving community safety.”