Councillor Paul Canning:

I welcome this opportunity to speak to this important committee. The North West Gateway Initiative is hugely important to the future of the north west. Last May, the North West Region Cross Border Group was invited to submit a response to the north-west gateway initiative consultation. We are here today to advise the committee of our response which was endorsed by all member councils and the wider stakeholder group. We were asked four questions: How far have the original objectives been advanced? To what extent has the co-operation become an integral part of the work of local government bodies and Departments? What are the north-west gateway future priorities? What is the most appropriate framework to pursue those priorities?

On the question of how far the original projects have been advanced, we agreed that some progress had been made, examples being the radiotherapy unit at Altnagelvin, the infrastructure at Eglinton Airport. However, at a number of levels the initiatives have not been delivered. Much remains to be done to fully develop the extension of the north-west gateway initiative and the implementation of its objectives. On the question of to what extent has the co-operation become an integral part of the work of local government bodies and Departments, progress between the Departments has been positive and should be commended. However, the extent of the co-operation is unclear to those working at local authority level. I refer to strong collaboration at local authority level, particularly through PEACE and INTERREG projects.

The North West Gateway Initiative list of future priorities include connectivity, access and infrastructure, which are vital to the north west region, enterprise, employment and education, health, community and quality living environment. The recommended most appropriate framework to pursue these priorities are a strategic development framework document agreed by the two governments to clarify the objectives for the region; an interdepartmental steering group to plan, oversee and drive the implementation; and ongoing consultation on the framework within the region, thus ensuring ownership and buy-in from the regional agencies and the stakeholders.