Vol. 448 No. 4
135 Mr. N. Ahern asked the Minister for Enterprise and Employment his views on the withdrawal of funding under the Horizon Initiative which has led to the withdrawal of the work options programme run by DIA, Mountjoy Square, Dublin 1, under the auspices of St. Michael's House; if he will have the programme restored; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2334/95]
The EU Horizon Initiative operated from 1992 to 1994 and supported innovative pilot projects over a defined period.
It was made clear to all project promoters at the outset that the funding period was finite. All promoters were also made aware of the essential difference between funding under the Horizon Initiative and assistance funded through mainstream national programmes. Under the criteria for funding as set out by the European Commission no Horizon project may receive continuous funding from the European Social Fund on completion of the pilot phase.
Accordingly, Horizon funding was not withdrawn from the project in question. Like all 95 Horizon projects which were cofunded in the 1992 to 1994 phase of the programme the St. Michael's House project completed the full pilot phase. The first Horizon programme ceased to be operational at the end of 1994. A new set of human resources community initiatives which will include an Horizon programme, will be operational in the course of this year. My Department is now involved in a national information campaign to publicise the EU human resources initiat-ives to prospective participants.
