asked the Minister for Finance when he proposes to introduce the procedures, promised in the 1987 Fianna Fáil Election Manifesto, to enable local authorities to make direct application for regional funding to the EC.
Written Answers. - EC Regional Funding.
67.
The regulations adopted by the European Council in 1988 for the operation of the increased Structural Funds require that assistance should be provided primarily in the form of multi-annual operational programmes. The programme approach was adopted to ensure the best possible co-ordination of measures to obtain the maximum benefit from the increased funds. A further reason for moving to a programme approach was that the EC Commission were having to deal with an increasing volume of projects and wanted to move to a more manageable coherent approach.
Thus the applications for EC assistance and advances of aid under the National Development Plan and Community Support Framework will be in the form of and on foot of operational programmes so the issue of individual agencies and bodies making direct application to the Commission no longer arises.
The local authorities will of course have a major part to play in the implementation of the National Development Plan and operational programmes. Where they are involved in measures such as road works and sanitary services which are funded by the Exchequer, the arrangment is that the full cost of the measures involved are provided in the annual Exchequer grants and the Exchequer recoups the related aid when received. In the case of measures where the domestic input is provided from the authorities' own resources, related EC aid will be channelled to them on receipt.