Mr. Eoin Doyle:

I will make two very brief points. First, I want to impress upon everyone the strength of the collaborative offering here today. There are local authorities North and South that are very familiar with one another and have an excellent track record of delivery and a desire to work together. This is evident not only through ICBAN, but also through our regional assembly and offerings such as the European social entrepreneurship funds, EuSEF, partnership, which was piloted by my colleagues in Leitrim County Council. There are local authorities that are ignoring county boundaries, looking at the regional whole and delivering where they are given the opportunity. As my colleague stated, we are only looking for the opportunity to play on the same field.

I will make just one other point, which I think the members would want me to make. We have had for many years a PEACE investment programme in the Border counties. It is different from the way in which local authorities work in other parts of the country but is an integral part of the way we work. It involves soft workings between communities in conflict areas, communities that have not met one another in generations and that are now working on community and enterprise projects. It is a hugely important part of the success story since the Good Friday Agreement, and we strongly encourage Members of the Oireachtas to emphasise the importance of peace work and the PEACE programme to local authorities in the years to come.