Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 30 March 2023
140. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform when the details of the PEACEPLUS programme will be announced; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15968/23]
Amharc ar fhreagraI am pleased to report significant progress in recent weeks in preparation for the opening of the PEACE PLUS programme.
This ambitious new EU cross-border programme has been approved by Government, by the Northern Ireland Executive, by the North South Ministerial Council and by the European Commission. PEACE PLUS will invest some €1.1bn in projects supporting shared peace and prosperity across a programme area of Northern Ireland and the Border counties of Ireland.
A final development requirement for the new programme has been the completion of a Financing Agreement between the EU, the UK and Ireland in order to formalise respective financial contributions to PEACE PLUS. This agreement was finalised and signed earlier this month and has now entered the parliamentary ratification process in the UK. It is expected that this will allow for the first funding Calls for Application under PEACE PLUS to issue in early summer 2023.
In terms of the detail of the new programme, PEACE PLUS has been developed by the cross-border Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB), working closely with my Department and with the Department of Finance in Northern Ireland. Programme development has been informed by extensive public consultation as well as engagement with stakeholders including government departments North and South.
The programme is structured around six thematic investment areas:
- Building Peaceful and Thriving Communities;
- Delivering Socio-Economic Regeneration and Transformation;
- Empowering and Investing in our Young People; - Healthy and Inclusive Communities;
- Supporting a Sustainable and Better Connected Future;
- Building and Embedding Partnership and Collaboration
Further information on each investment area is available at www.seupb.eu/peaceplus, and I would encourage all interested stakeholders to visit to learn more.
In advance of PEACE PLUS opening for applications in the weeks ahead, the SEUPB is already engaged in extensive pre-application support for potential applicants. This includes a series of workshops held across the programme area, covering individual investment areas under the new programme. This preparation work is helping to ensure that applicants will be able to develop and submit high quality applications once Calls for Application open.
