Mr. Niall Burgess:

The reconciliation fund has been a critical component of our work in advancing reconciliation in Northern Ireland and in North-South relations as well. The fund has increased steadily in recent years. That is one response. Three years ago, it stood at €2.7 million and this year it is €5 million, inclusive of a contribution to the northwest partnership. That reflects a commitment made by the Government under the New Decade, New Approach agreement to increase funding for reconciliation fund activities. Funding has increased beyond the scope of that commitment.

We recently agreed a new strategy for the reconciliation fund. Much of what the fund has long been doing still needs to be done. It is doing work that other donors and assistance providers are not doing. One element of that work has been to increase its accessibility to applicants. Another element has been to increase the component within the fund for North-South activities, but also for east-west activities. Therefore, we are investing more of the total proportion of the reconciliation fund in activities that support British-Irish links or in activities within Great Britain.