Beverley Flynn (Mayo, Independent)
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I welcome the opportunity to speak of the under spending in the National Development Plan 2000-2006. The plan was negotiated under Agenda 2000 and set up the BMW and the southern and eastern regions for the purposes of drawing down EU structural funding. Is under spending in breach of a legally binding agreement between Ireland and the EU? The National Development Plan 2000-2006 states the position negotiated under Agenda 2000. The agreement was made under the community support framework for Ireland 2000-06. I tabled a question on the status of the situation to the Minister for Finance. He states that the regulations do not permit the transfer of the overall allocation of Structural Funds between the BMW region and the southern and eastern region. A transfer of resources has not been sought by the Government and no proposals have been considered for such action. The reply informs us that the BMW region has under spent to the tune of €3.6 billion in the National Development Plan 2000-2006.

If the Minister informs us he has kept within the regulations of the Community Support Framework as far as Structural Funds are concerned, it is clear that the under spending is occurring within the Exchequer funding of the plan. While that may not be in breach of the regulations and the legally binding contract, it goes against the spirit of the National Development Plan 2000-2006 in which the Government committed Exchequer funding as well as EU Structural Funds. The National Development Plan 2000-2006 is a contract between the Government and the people. The under spending must be rectified but it is difficult to understand how this can be achieved. If the Government spent an extra €10 million per day for the next year, it would not make up the ground it has lost.

More than one year ago the Minister of State at the Department of Finance stated on behalf of the senior Minister that the Government was committed to redressing the imbalance. In 2002 the Government supported the campaign for regionalisation. It fought the battle to retain Objective One status in the BMW region, resulting in Objective One and transition funding for the rest of the country. Having won the battle and drawn up the national development plan to put it into effect, the Government is now going against the spirit of its policy as outlined in the National Development Plan 2000-2006.

Jerry Cowley (Mayo, Independent)
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It is a disgrace.

Beverley Flynn (Mayo, Independent)
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The gap between the east and west is widening. In recent weeks my attempts to discuss an issue have been rejected by the Ceann Comhairle. I asked the Minister for Finance about the under spending on national roads but the question was transferred to the Department of Transport. The Minister for Transport informed me that there is under spending of €500 million on national roads in the BMW region. My efforts to raise this matter on the Adjournment were refused by the Ceann Comhairle on the basis that the Minister was not answerable to the Dáil on this question and that the NRA was responsible. This is part of the National Development Plan 2000-2006 for which the Government is responsible. This is utter nonsense and I could use stronger language to express myself.

There is disbelief in County Mayo and the BMW region at this situation. The county council has sent several deputations to the NRA seeking the delivery of roads included in the National Development Plan 2000-2006, including the N5 from Castlebar to Westport, the N26 from Bohola to Ballina, the Ballinrobe bypass, the Castlebar orbital route, the Westport ring road, the Castlebar to Claremorris road and the Castlebar to Belmullet road, which is a regional route. When the deputations meet the NRA they are told they should be happy with the Charlestown bypass. In a response from the Minister on 29 March I am informed that there is under spending of €500 million on national roads. As there is no investment in infrastructure, jobs are not being created and this affects every aspect of the development plan. If there are no jobs, no power and no access to our county, the gap between east and west is widening and the Government has only six months to honour its obligation. When the new plan comes into effect in 2007 we are aware that it will be non-specific, making it more difficult to hold the Government accountable. The Government should not think this shortfall can be made up.

Jerry Cowley (Mayo, Independent)
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Deputy Cooper-Flynn should have spoken up before now.

Beverley Flynn (Mayo, Independent)
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Deputy Cowley is trying to piggyback on this issue.

Jerry Cowley (Mayo, Independent)
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Deputy Cooper-Flynn had many years in which to speak up.

Beverley Flynn (Mayo, Independent)
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The sad reality is that Deputy Cowley must piggyback on many other issues also. It is sad that this is the only way in which he can get attention. He is devoid of all original notions.

Jerry Cowley (Mayo, Independent)
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I am glad the Deputy is speaking up now.

Beverley Flynn (Mayo, Independent)
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I speak on an issue that is important to the people of County Mayo and I am being heckled by a Deputy from my county who has no regard for the serious issues affecting the people of our county. If he thinks wasting time is a valuable contribution as a Deputy for the county he is seriously mistaken.

Jerry Cowley (Mayo, Independent)
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I am delighted she is speaking up now but she should have done it years ago.

Batt O'Keeffe (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister for Finance apologises for not responding to this debate. Ireland will draw down its full entitlements under the Structural Funds for each region. This means that investments will continue to take place in both regions leading to further improvements in living standards. These large-scale co-financed investments have occurred in roads, water services, child care, enterprise, and in the other extensive range of areas involved. Enterprises, employees, parents and children, commuters and others have benefited as a result through, for example, expanded service availability, access to employment and improved transport infrastructure. The Minister emphasises that the results achieved with the resources from the Structural Funds have been good based on independent analysis. The update evaluation of the Community support framework completed by independent consultants states that an analysis of data on Ireland's relative performance within the EU in the broad infrastructural and socio-economic areas that are co-financed shows it to be above the EU performance economically. The analysis also states that, while the Border, midlands and west region has not yet converged with the southern and eastern region, it has converged with the EU average.

Agenda 2000 was the negotiation process on the European Union's financial perspectives from 2000 to 2006. That determined Ireland's allocation of €3.3 billion in Structural Funds for the current programme period of 2000 to 2006. Ireland's allocation of Structural Funds is governed by the regulations and an agreement between the Government and the European Commission known as the Community Support Framework for Ireland 2000-2006.

To prepare for the framework, the Government, with the agreement of the European Commission and the Statistical Office of the European Communities, made new regionalisation arrangements changing Ireland's single region status with the aim of retaining Objective One status for the greatest possible area and optimising Ireland's entitlement to Structural Funds for the period to the end of 2006. As the Deputy stated, the outcome was the designation of two regions for Structural Funds purposes.

The Border, midlands and west region, incorporating the existing regional authorities of Border, west and midlands areas, retained full Objective One status for the full period from 2000 to 2006 because its gross domestic product at the time was less than 75% of the EU average. The remaining five regional authorities of Dublin, mid-east, south-east, south-west and mid-west were grouped into the NUTS II southern and eastern region. That region qualified for phasing-out arrangements under Objective One because it was a region that had qualified for Objective One levels of funding under the previous planning period but that now had a GDP above 75% of the average.

Under the Community Support Framework for Ireland 2000-2006, the country was allocated €3.3 billion in Structural Funds for the period. Of that allocation, the BMW region qualified for Structural Funds of €1.4 billion, with the balance of €1.9 billion going to the southern and eastern region. Regionalisation has the effect of increasing the Structural Funds allocation to the BMW region and of allowing that region to receive EU co-funding of up to 75% for individual projects, whereas the southern and eastern region only receives EU co-funding of 50%. Where state aid applies, lower rates are applicable. It should be emphasised that the Structural Fund regulations do not permit the transfer of the overall allocation of Structural Funds between the BMW and the southern and eastern regions. No transfer of the resources has been sought by the Government, and no proposals for such action are being considered.

Under the Structural Fund regulations, expenditure on co-funded measures must be incurred before the end of December 2008 to be eligible for the drawdown of Structural Funds for the 2000 to 2006 programming period. Reports to the monitoring committees for each of the operational programmes for the period January 2000 to December 2005 indicated that expenditure on co-funded measures for each region is on target. Based on those reports, the Minister expects that both regions' entitlement to Structural Funds will be fully drawn down in line with the timetable set out in the regulations. In those circumstances the proposal outlined in the Deputy's motion is not expected to arise.