My Department is responsible for a range of programmes to support communities, including the Local and Community Development Programme which tackles poverty and social exclusion in disadvantaged communities; the RAPID Programme (Revitalising Areas through Planning Investment and Development) which tackles the spatial concentration of poverty and social exclusion in designated areas; and the Rural Development Programme 2007-2013 which implements measures to improve the quality of life in rural areas and facilitate the diversification of the rural economy.
All programmes, and associated financial provisions, will be considered in the context of the expenditure review processes now under way across Departments generally.