Cathy Bennett (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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7. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if he will report on his engagements regarding the LEADER programme under the next EU budgetary cycle. [68487/25]

Cathy Bennett (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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LEADER funding, as the Minister will be aware, plays a vital role in our communities and businesses, especially in my constituency of Cavan-Monaghan. A reduction in LEADER funding would be unacceptable for rural communities that are already struggling. Can the Minister assure us that LEADER funding will not be reduced?

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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For over 30 years, LEADER has delivered tangible benefits to rural communities in areas such as economic development and job creation, rural infrastructure, social inclusion, environmental sustainability and, as we discussed, rural activities. Therefore, the development of the EU regulations relating to the post-2027 Common Agricultural Policy, CAP, and the new national and regional partnership plans is a matter of significant importance to me and to my Department. Ireland will continue to advocate for a well-funded CAP that supports farm resilience, environmental ambition and, crucially, rural development measures such as LEADER.

Within the draft regulations, the inclusion of the LEADER programme as a CAP intervention is to be welcomed. As part of the ongoing negotiation process, my Department continues to emphasise the importance of a ring-fenced allocation for the LEADER Programme. Detailed discussions on the shape and operation of the new regulations are ongoing at both national and EU levels. To facilitate the current negotiation process for the post-2027 period, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has established a CAP consultative committee, which includes representation from my Department. I acknowledge the work of the Minister, Deputy Heydon, in involving my Department in this.

Separately, while in Strasbourg last week, I met with Irish MEPs, including Kathleen Funchion, to discuss a range of issues, including LEADER funding, in the context of the next EU budgetary cycle. I will continue to work with the Irish MEPs and my Government colleagues to ensure that the LEADER programme is supported and well funded into the future.

Cathy Bennett (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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The LEADER programme has played a crucial role in rural development, especially in addressing and developing the rural community. It has, therefore, been a regressive move that LEADER has faced cuts in every programme for nearly 20 years. Prior to the financial crisis, the annualised budget for the LEADER programme between 2007 to 2013 was €57 million per year, reducing to €54 million post the crash. The annual allocation for the 2014 to 2020 programme was slashed by one third to €35 million. The Government signed off on a transition programme of €35 million to €36 million on average per year for 2023 to 2027. That is not only a cut in real terms. Taking account of inflation, LEADER funding must stand at half of what it once was. My question again is: does the Minister accept that the LEADER budget has been gutted and what can he do about it?

David Maxwell (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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If the Minister will hold on, Deputy McGuinness has a supplementary question.

Conor McGuinness (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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LEADER funding has been cut in 2024 and 2025 and now it has been cut in the budget for next year. I would like to know what the rationale is for that and I would like a breakdown of what will be affected by that cut. The cut in LEADER funding for next year is in the order of €10 million.

That has to be considered in the broader reconfiguration of CAP happening at European level and the Government's failure - this is bigger than the Department only as it is being led by the Department of agriculture - to come to terms with that and to exert influence at European level to ensure that rural development funding and, indeed, other measures are protected within that reconfiguration.

This is also part of a direction of travel here in Ireland where there has been a divestment in rural communities by successive Governments from 2014 on, with changes to the LEADER programme and, as my colleague Deputy Bennett said, year-on-year cuts to funding.

It can be dressed up as being about transitional periods and an envelope of funding that lasts but in real terms, we are seeing cuts year on year.

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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One cannot talk about LEADER cuts without also talking about the fact that a whole range of new programmes have been invested in, including RRDF, TVRS, RSS and CCIF. They are now in place but were not in place over many years of the LEADER programme. They fulfil many of the duties LEADER did. LEADER funding is not cut for next year. We will spend the full allocation during the programme. The remaining €180 million has been allocated for 2023 to 2027. That maintains the funding with the previous programme. I am confident we will spend that full €180 million. Approvals are currently slow, as has always been the method. We will ensure allocations are in place. I am working on a post-2027 scenario. That is why I have had meetings with MEPs. I encourage the Deputies to do the same in terms of looking at that cross-European support that we need to have a LEADER programme funded separately under the CAP measure. That is important. The MEPs left me under no illusion last week as to the challenges relating to the multiannual financial framework, MFF, and funding.

Cathy Bennett (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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I am relaying the fears of my constituents. LEADER funding was cut in the immediate aftermath of the financial crash, was raided during the austerity years and it was cut further in real terms under the previous Government. The meagre increase is not enough to keep up with inflation. My fear now is the Government is seemingly not that put out about a European Commission proposal to cut CAP by nearly 25%, through which LEADER is funded, and that the European Commission, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael will see our local development companies and rural development take the short straw once again. Will the Minister not only rule out further cuts to LEADER but commit at European level to advocating for the full restoration of LEADER funds to pre-crash levels?

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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I do not have the Waterford figures but the Cavan LEADER programme for 2023 to 2027 has an allocation of €6.37 million. There is €5.985 million for Monaghan. To date, under the 2023 to 2027 programme, 45 projects have been approved, 25 in Cavan and 20 in Monaghan to the value of €1.62 million in Cavan and €1.29 million in Monaghan. That funding continues but it is also in partnership with the other projects I mentioned. We have seen some of those projects in RSS, CCIF and RRDF. I will continue to work the Deputy and the Chair on delivering projects in Cavan and Monaghan. The development companies are very important partners in developing those projects. I was in Cork last weekend with the Minister of State where we saw IRD Duhallow using other projects. The Deputy can be absolute assured that I am very focused on LEADER. That is why I was in Strasbourg last week and met MEPs. Equally, it is not the Government causing the difficulties. A debate is under way about the entire European budget. I assure the Deputy the studs are on and we will defend the interests of LEADER and I will defend the interests of rural communities.