Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I was delighted to welcome the recent announcement that the European Commission has confirmed its approval of Ireland's Common Agricultural Policy, CAP, strategic plan for 2023 to 2027, which includes the LEADER programme. This approval is a key step in the delivery of the next LEADER programme.

A number of further steps will now be completed by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine in advance of bringing the CAP plan to Government for final approval in the coming weeks. My Department's focus now is to finalise the design of the new LEADER programme in conjunction with key stakeholders. There will be a two-stage process to select local action groups to implement the new programme. The first will be an expression of interest by eligible groups, followed by a more detailed stage which will see them develop their LEADER strategies. I hope to confirm full details of this process shortly. I am confident the programme will fully adhere to the seven core principles of LEADER and comply with all the EU regulations that govern the programme.

A budget of €180 million has been allocated for the LEADER programme for the period 2023 to 2027, and I am confident all of this funding will be allocated to the local action groups. It is now important the key public and private stakeholders in communities throughout Ireland come together in partnership to deliver a LEADER programme that will build on the fantastic success of the programme over the past 30 years and ensure LEADER continues to play a central role in supporting rural communities into the future.

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