Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I will take the opportunity to ask the Minister and Ministers of State a few questions. I am conscious of the time. People want to get out on the road, so we will try to be out of here as quickly as possible.

I will touch on the Leader programme and funding for various projects, which is a major issue for rural Ireland, as the witnesses would expect. This was raised in the Dáil yesterday by my colleague, Deputy Danny Healy-Rae. As politicians, we are being put under pressure to deliver locally.

I have put together a few notes on the Leader programme 2014-20, which is the current one. From 1992 to 2016, the programme was successfully delivered by community-led local development companies. In 2016, local action groups, LAGs, established within each local authority were contracted to deliver 23 Leader contracts, with the remaining three contracts delivered directly by local development companies. The 2014-20 programme, launched in July 2016, allocated €220 million to address poverty reduction, social inclusion and the economy of rural areas.

Evidence from these programmes has shown a failure to lead. This comes from the communities, not us. In their view, the move away from a development-led approach to a competitive grant fund has reduced the level of community engagement in the Leader programme. Ten months into the programme, the level of grant approvals nationally is low. In one mid-west LAG, for example, €1.4 million of grant aid was approved after ten months in the 2007-13 programme compared with just €6,600 under the current programme, or 0.5% of the earlier level. In a south-west LAG, the respective figures are €1.7 million and zero.

In the application process, the estimated minimum timeline for promoters seeking grant support from expression of interest to grant contract stage is nine months. The programme's administration is complex, with the workload trebling, thereby reducing the time that front-line staff can spend supporting communities and entrepreneurs. This is costly. The Department has contracted Pobal to audit 100% of programme expenditure. That is unprecedented. Previously, administrative checks were carried out effectively by local development companies, as evidenced by the low level of ineligible funding - 0.5% at no additional cost - in the 2007-13 programme. In reality, local development companies continue to undertake checks, passing them on to local authorities, which in turn pass them on to Pobal for triple checks, leading to significant delays and costs. The cost of the 100% audit function may end up being higher than the cost of ineligible funding under previous programmes.

This is the national picture. I have spoken about this issue often. I have seen the benefit of the Leader programme to rural communities, as have the Minister and Ministers of State, who come from rural communities. We have discussed the local issue in west Cork. It now has three Leader companies where there was one before. Where is the programme in west Cork? Last December, the Minister told me that an office would open in Clonakilty, but none has. When will the local community development committee, LCDC, Leader local development strategy be published? No one appears to have seen it or been involved in its preparation. Requests from Cork County Council to Pobal and the Department have been ignored.

When is the money going to be spent on the ground? People have projects and ideas. I meet many groups that are pulling out because this is not happening. The vibe out there is bad, especially given that this was a super programme that used to get projects off the ground. Groups claim that the funding is poor. I can only speak on behalf of west Cork, where groups are finding it more difficult to engage and are not encouraged to apply with their projects. These are serious issues, so I would appreciate it if the Minister would address some of them. I have a question for the Minister of State, Deputy Ring, as well, but he will contribute in a minute, so we can discuss it then.