asked the Minister for Finance the amount of the European Regional Fund which has been spent in Connacht-Ulster; the amount for the last four years; and the portion of the total spent on industrial development.
Written Answers. - European Regional Fund.
551.
Grants from the European Regional Development Fund are paid as a reimbursement of national expenditure incurred on approved projects, and the amounts received are applied to increase the overall level of investment under the Public Capital Programme. Since the programme is not broken down into sub-regional figures, it is not possible to identify what proportion of receipts were applied to projects in Connacht-Ulster.
Receipts from the fund amounted to £8.5 million in 1977, £11.1 million in 1978, £25.5 million in 1979 and £46.4 million in 1980. These amounts represent the following percentages of the Public Capital Programme in each year: 1.28 per cent in 1977, 1.39 per cent in 1978, 2.54 per cent in 1979 and 3.65 per cent in 1980.
The portion of the Public Capital Programme spent on industrial development in the years in question was: 23.05 per cent in 1977, 22.62 per cent in 1978, 26.69 per cent in 1979 and 24.43 per cent in 1980.