A review of the project file referred to in the Question, has been undertaken by my Department, and the drawdown of aid for this project is ineligible as the project does not comply with the rules and regulations governing the Rural Development Programme 2007-2013. Section 2.3 of the operating rules governing the Programme clearly states that “Any element or phase of activity commenced prior to acceptance of the grant offer shall not be considered for grant aid. Payment of grant aid to a promoter in respect of activity that has commenced prior to acceptance of the grant offer will be deemed ineligible for assistance and shall result in the decommittment of the entire project or the relevant phase of the project”.
In the case of this project, I am advised that project expenditure occurred prior to the lodgement of a signed contract with Mayo North East LEADER Partnership. The delay in processing the application in accordance with the requirements of section 8.1 of the operating rules, while unfortunate, cannot therefore be accepted as a reason for the non-compliance with section 2.3 of the operating rules.
