Deep cuts to vital voluntary and community services have been “disproportionate” and will cause “enduring damage” to Irish society, a detailed report on the sector has found.
The document, Downsizing the Community Sector by social policy analyst Brian Harvey, was published yesterday. Commissioned by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu), it was “the first thorough analysis of the impact of Government cuts on the sector over the recession years”, said David Connolly, who chairs the union’s community sector committee.