Burton: JobBridge not a tally exercise

Social Protection Minister Joan Burton has denied that JobBridge is a Government "exercise in reducing the tally of numbers on the live register" to imply a decrease in the level of social welfare assistance provided by the State.

The claim had been made in a parliamentary question to the minister from Independent TD John Halligan.

Another Independent TD, Mick Wallace, also pressed Ms Burton, saying “if existing training schemes and courses are designed to solely reduce numbers on the live register and that opening these schemes to persons on other social welfare allowances would actually have a greater impact on returning persons to the workforce”.