Vol. 420 No. 5
19 Mr. Byrne asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food when it is intended to establish the national consultative council to advise on the progress and implementation of rural development policy which was promised in the Review of the Programme for Government; if he will outline the way the council will function; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
64 Mr. J. Bruton asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food whether the Government will establish a national consultative council to advise on the progress and implementation of rural development policy.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 19 and 64 together.
I expect to be able to establish the National Consultative Committee on Rural Development shortly.
The committee will be part of the new national structure for promoting rural development now being put in place. The principal purpose of the committee will be to monitor the progress and implementation of rural development policy and to advise me accordingly and to keep the operation of the new structure under review.
I wish to ask the Minister whether an interdepartmental meeting took place in his Department yesterday to set down new criteria — additional and restrictive criteria — for the Leader programme. I ask the Minister whether he is aware of the success of the programme in introducing the "bottom up" approach. The programme has enabled many communities to unleash much of their latent resources. Does the Minister know that the IDA, Bord Fáilte and several other State agencies are hell bent on strangling many of those initiatives by encroaching on areas that the Leader programme and those local communities have taken on to themselves and are developing so successfully?
I am not aware of such a meeting. It may very well have taken place, but I certainly was not at it. I am a great supporter of the Leader programme, by which local communities can put forward projects to be decided by the local steering committee of the Leader programme. The steering committee decides which projects are to be grant aided.
Under the European Community regulations the Department have forwarded guidelines to Leader programmes. In the case of one Leader programme at least, I should prefer the guidelines to be not as restrictive as they are, because my understanding of the Leader programme is that it was truly a "bottom up" programme and that if a local steering committee felt that a programme was beneficial to a community then it should be proceeded with. However, I was advised as late as yesterday that up to £50,000 of grant can be made available by the Leader programme to any local community project but that for a sum greater than £50,000 those involved in the project would have to adhere to the guidelines. I am concerned that bureaucracy and red tape might creep into this scheme. I should not like to think that any other State bodies would try to muscle their way into the scheme.
Examination of the successful Leader applications, which number 15 to 17, shows that applications received from a certain part of the country have not been successful. All of those applying under the Leader scheme displayed a positive commitment. Will a decision be made to allow people to make new applications soon so that they might receive consideration, especially in relation to applications from parts of the country that have not be touched by the programme and have no immediate possibility of receiving a grant?
I have spoken to the European Commission, and specifically the Commissioner himself, who is very keen on this programme. I am hopeful that additional funds will be made available. Sixteen or 17 applications qualified under the first tranche and the total number of applications would have been double that.
There were no successful applications from one part of the country, not one.
I am not familiar with the geographic location of successful applications, other than I am glad that west Cork was one area so designated.
I am sure it was.
All of us support the Leader programme but widespread delays have been experienced in relation to the agencies that have been approved by the Department as being the administrative agencies. There are those who have made applications for funding and projects which should fit into the terms of the criteria and are still waiting for a result after 12 months. We will either have to announce the plans and projects soon or local people who are leaders in their communities will experience frustration.
I agree that there has been a delay in the start up of the projects. I suppose that is because the scheme is completely new. The majority of the 16 successful Leader applications have been legally signed up and it is now a matter for them to get on with the job. I have another concern about proposed projects, in isolated rural areas at any rate. I feel that it may be quite difficult for remote areas to come up with the pound for pound funding. I should like consideration to be given to a proposal for 75:25 per cent funding, particularly for isolated areas.
I thank the Minister for his unqualified support for the programme. I should like to ask him to investigate whether or not such a meeting took place and to do everything in his power to ensure that absolutely no restrictions are put on communities which are obviously finding their way and which are doing tremendous work in the development of programmes. Could I make the further point that Brussels is disgusted at the prospect that there would be a row back, and that would lead to very successful IRDs being pulled out, particularly in the west.
I shall investigate that and communicate with Deputy Higgins.
