Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)
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I welcome the Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Fergus O'Dowd.

Brian Ó Domhnaill (Fianna Fail)
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Baineann an rún seo le Meitheal Forbartha na Gaeltachta, MFG, Teo. Seo comhlacht pairtnéireachta a bhí ag cur seirbhísí tábhachtacha ar fáil do phobal na Gaeltachta, go háirithe na cláracha éagsúla a bhí ar siúl acu cosúil le clár Leader, Regional Development Programme, agus an clár áitiúil, Local Development Social Inclusion Programme, LDSIP. Chuir an comhlacht cúrsaí tréanála i bhfeidhm chomh maith. Is é an scéim is tábhachtaí, i mo thuairim, an ceann a cuireadh ar fáil faoi scéim Leader, mar go raibh an Ghaeltacht in ann buntáiste a fháil as an scéim sin go sonrach nuair a bhí sé i bhfeidhm.

Ar an drochuair, níl MFG ann níos mó. Ar 7 Meán Fómhair anuraidh, rinne bord MFG cinneadh deireadh a chur leis an chomhlacht de bharr impleachtaí trádála agus de bhrí go raibh deacrachtaí ag an chomhlacht féin. Dá bhrí sin, tá pobal na Gaeltachta ag cailleadh amach anois. Tá sé beagnach cúig mhí ó ghlach bord MFG an cinneadh deireadh a chur leis an chomhlacht.

MFG was a partnership company, like Louth Leader Partnership or Donegal Local Development Company Limited. It provided excellent services. It had staff employed and was administering Leader funds, the only funds available to many small businesses and community organisations. Since the board of MFG Teoranta decided to wind down on 7 September last year, no services are being provided and no Leader funds are going into the Donegal Gaeltacht because no administration structure is in place. It is now almost five months since it wound down, yet no alternative mechanism or administration process has been put in place to allow the transfer of Leader funds to Gaeltacht projects. As a result, the Gaeltacht is losing out.

I raise this matter in order to find out what progress has been made on the establishment of a new Gaeltacht partnership company located in the Gaeltacht and what opportunities will be available to the former staff of MFG or others who could be employed in the new partnership company. Does the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government have alternative solutions to the problem which has been ongoing for five months? The people of the Gaeltacht want Leader funds to be made available to projects. Leader funds available from 2007 to 2013 under Pillar ll of the Common Agricultural Policy amount to more than €5 billion and it is not fair that in the past five or six months Gaeltacht projects have been losing out.

The rural transport service is also losing out. Some operators in Gaeltacht areas were not paid before the company wound up. They are owed substantial amounts of money and unable to find out if they will ever see the money they are owed, even though it was paid by the Health Service Executive to MFG Teoranta which is now in liquidation. There must be some obligation on the Government to step in and resolve the issue, to end the uncertainty and pay those who are owed money. They include the former staff of MFG who have, to date, received only the statutory redundancy payment from the Department of Social Protection. They have not, as yet, received any redundancy payment from the company.

I hope the Minister of State will have some news for us because this issue has been ongoing for far too long. I understand there are legal and technical difficulties, but they must be resolved and Leader funds restored to Gaeltacht communities which are losing out.

Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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Ba mhaith liom mo bhuíochas a ghabháil don Seanadóir Ó Domhnaill as ucht an rún seo a chur faoi bhráid an tSeanaid. Tá an freagra as Béarla, ach cuirfidh mé Gaeilge ar an chéad chuid de, más féidir liom. Comhlacht áitiúil do ghaeltachtaí is ea Meitheal Forbartha na Gaeltachta Teoranta, go mórmhór do ghaeltachtaí ins na contaetha seo a leanas, Corcaí, Ciarraí, Dún na nGall, Gaillimh, Muigheó, Mí agus Port Láirge.

MFG was an independent company with its own board of management and memorandum and articles of association which had responsibility under company law for the proper stewardship of the company. The Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government has no role in the internal operations of local development-partnership companies. However, MFG was under contract to the Department and operated a number of programmes both for it and other Departments. Programmes delivered by it for it included rural walkways, the rural development programme, RDP, Leader, and the local and community development programme, LCDP. MFG ceased trading on 7 September 2011 and is going though a company liquidation process.

We understand the difficulty the recent dissolution of the company presents for the staff and project promoters in Gaeltacht areas. However, it is incumbent on the Minister and the Department to ensure any solution arrived at will ensure the continued effective delivery of services in Gaeltacht areas previously supplied by the company. Such services must be delivered in the most efficient manner possible and in compliance with all legal obligations, including national and EU obligations.

No final decisions have been made on an alternative delivery mechanism for RDP support in Gaeltacht areas. When determining alternative delivery mechanisms for the RDP and other programmes, there are complex legal and contractual issues to be resolved. The Department is considering both long and short-term solutions to allow the continued delivery of the RDP and other programmes in Gaeltacht areas.

I can confirm that significant progress is being made. All relevant RDP, Leader, project files have been released by the liquidator and are now with the Department and all project promoters will be contacted shortly. The Department has had discussions with the European Commission and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine on the RDP and is working with them to ensure any solutions will be regulatory compliant. It is the intention of the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Phil Hogan, to find a solution that will be efficient and effective and applied at the earliest possible opportunity. All relevant stakeholders will be notified once a suitable solution is determined.