Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I ask the Minister to address the issue of the downgrading of the BMW region. When was he informed of that and what consequences will it have? I agree with what the Minister just said but the fact remains that the funds to which he refers are under threat. Decisions on these funds will be made and the groundwork for the next EU budget will be done during the summer period. We need to know that the Minister will be involved in those decisions and negotiations and that the Taoiseach, in the context of the current negotiations on various jobs within the European Commission, is standing up for these funds because they are the only source of money for many rural and urban communities. We must be sure that someone stands up for these funds and that we are awake to the threat of losing them. I have no doubt that the Minister is awake to that threat but I seek assurances that there is a cross-Government approach to protecting these funds in the context of the EU budget negotiations.

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