Vol. 405 No. 5
46 Mr. O'Toole asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if the operation of the EC initiative on the Rural Development LEADER Programme will involve local community and development agencies; if programmes approved under this scheme will be allocated uniformly throughout the country; and the procedures he proposes to adopt in this regard.
As the LEADER initiative has not yet been formally adopted by the EC Commission it is not possible to provide definitive information on its application or how it will operate here. However, it is clear that the Commission proposal is to help finance local groups to implement initiatives for the development of rural communities. The intention is that groups, which may be private, public or mixed, will be selected by the Commission, following consultation with my Department, on the basis of business plans submitted for their areas. While it is clear from the draft proposals that the initiative will have limited geographical application in the Community my aim is to ensure that as many of our rural areas as possible can benefit. I will be making a detailed announcement when, as expected, the initiative is formally adopted and published by the Commission later this month.
