Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 17 February 2022
56. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development if she will allow discretionary funding under LEADER Food Initiative for projects that were submitted but withdrawn to resubmit with the new parameters of a project to be funded. [8698/22]
View answerThe LEADER Food Initiative is administered at local level by Local Action Groups (LAGs) with overall funding allocated at a national level by my Department. Project applications are in the first instance considered at local level, with subsequent final project approval signed off by my Department on a first come first served basis. As with all funding programmes, there is a finite budget available for allocation under this measure and the funding budget is exhausted.
As the applications for this funding stream were considered on a first come first served basis and only when all relevant documentation was submitted to the Department, in the interest of fairness to all applicants for this funding it is not possible to permit changes to the project application after it has been approved. It is open to LAGs to provide funding to projects, which are withdrawn due to project changes, through their Transitional LEADER programme or EURI project budget allocations.
During 2022, my Department will keep the delivery and drawdown of funding awarded under the LEADER Food Initiative under review and should any unutilised funding become available as a result of this review consideration will be given to running a new national funding call later in the year.
