Vol. 472 No. 4
51 Mr. McGrath asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry if his attention has been drawn to the fact that people providing employment in the tourism industry with touring caravans do not qualify for inclusion in the Leader programme due to the fact that their facilities are not fixed structures; and if he will have this anomaly rectified. [20288/96]
I refer the Deputy to my reply to his question on 23 October 1996 when I advised him that "Motor vehicles and mobile equipment" are excluded for funding under the Leader programme on the basis that such investments (a) are not normally eligible for aid under publicly funded schemes, (b) have multi-purpose uses which may not be related to the project being aided and (c) are easily disposed of outside of the project and the area in which aid may be offered. As touring caravans are considered to be mobile equipment they are ineligible for aid under Leader.
For the reasons given I do not propose to amend the rules under which Leader groups operate to allow motor vehicles, including touring caravans, to be grant aided.
