Vol. 498 No. 2
199 Mr. Finucane asked the Minister for Finance the reason County Limerick has been precluded form Objective One status even though it is contiguous to Kerry and Clare; if he will make amendments in this regard; if County Limerick will be designated under the rural renewal scheme when clearance is received from the EU Commission that the business tax incentives are acceptable. [27023/98]
The Government, in deciding on the application to EUROSTAT for a NUTS II reclassification, had to take account of factors such as the opposition expressed by the Commission to any regionalisation based on subsidy shopping and creative geography — this required a relatively modest approach in terms of reclassification; the precedent effect of recent changes in western peripheral regions of the UK; the need to meet general EUROSTAT criteria in regard to size, population and geographical contiguity.
Against this background, the Government decided on an application for the reclassification of Ireland's single NUTS II region status into two NUTS II regions — one comprising the Border, midlands and the west, including Counties Kerry and Clare; the other comprising the rest of the country. This application has now been lodged with EUROSTAT. The proposed inclusion of Clare and Kerry in one region means that the total west coast from Donegal to Kerry is now encompassed. This provides a plausible and realistic view of a peripheral area of the Community, in good balance with the overall Community picture.
In regard to poor areas outside of the proposed Objective One region, I would draw the Deputy's attention to the Government's commitment in its press release on the regionalisation proposal that the proposal will not in any sense deflect the Government from its commitment to tackle social exclusion, urban or rural.
