Muintir na Tíre pleads for state funding

THE head of a community movement that has helped thousands of elderly and vulnerable people in recent years has pleaded with the next government not to cut its funding.

Muintir na Tíre national president Martin Quinn said continued financial support is vital for the organisation from any new government formed after the general election.

Speaking in Tipperary, Mr Quinn said Muintir na Tíre was never as important to communities as it is in the current climate.

Muintir na Tíre operates a community development programme to offer support to community councils, and the Community Alert programme, operated in partnership with An Garda Síochána.

Between the two programmes, it has a national network of over 1,500 groups and thousands of volunteers nationwide.

Mr Quinn said most people are aware of the track record of the organisation but that their greatest achievements are impossible to measure. “They are the sense of unity, the neighbourliness, the spirit of citizenship, the initiative and independence which Muintir na Tíre has fostered in communities throughout the length and breadth of the country.”