As I stated in my reply to a question on this matter on 1 June last, the Irish Sailors and Soldiers Land Trust Act, 1988 provides that the money received from the trust be disposed of for the purposes of projects or undertakings, including the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, involving co-operation between the State and Northern Ireland or the State and Britain or relating to the island of Ireland as a whole.
In December of last year, my Department placed advertisements in the Irish national and Northern Irish newspapers as well as the Irish Post in Britain, inviting applications from organisations or individuals for funding for projects which would fall under the terms of the 1988 Act and, in particular, would promote mutual understanding and reconciliation, or which would sustain and develop ventures on an island of Ireland basis or which would promote the welfare of the Irish community in Britain.
In assessing submissions, priority was given to organisations that would have difficulty obtaining commercial sponsorship; or where the organisation or proposal would not normally or readily be funded by other Government Departments, statutory agencies or other public authorities, by reference to functions discharged or services provided. Furthermore, because of the relative availability of funding from other sources for North-South co-operation, priority was accorded to projects or undertakings as between the State and Britain, and relating to the island of Ireland as a whole.
Following an assessment process which was undertaken by an interdepartmental committee, 59 applications were selected which best met the criteria for disbursement of the funds available. Included amongst these are a significant number containing cross-community or cross-tradition elements that provide opportunities for the Government to demonstrate, in a very practical way, the commitments entered into under the Good Friday Agreement to promote reconciliation on the island of Ireland and between the people of Ireland and Britain to show respect for the diversity of traditions in the island.
