Willie Penrose (Longford-Westmeath, Labour)
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Question 503: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if her attention has been drawn to the fact that a number of the county enterprise boards no longer have finance available to fund capital and employment grants under measure one and that this has been the case since April 2008; if, in view of these circumstances, she will confirm having received requests from such boards for additional funding; the number and name of boards who have sought additional funding; the steps she will take to provide the additional funding which is more necessary than ever in the current economic climate; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27562/08]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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The allocation of individual budgets to the thirty-five County and City Enterprise Boards is carried out by the CEB Central Coordination Unit (CCU) which has been set up within Enterprise Ireland to carry out a number of functions in respect of the CEBs which had been previously undertaken by my Department. Such functions include the allocation of budgets to individual CEBs for the year and the effective management of available resources to the CEB network in order to maximise sustainable development in the micro-enterprise sector.

In determining the 2008 allocations for individual CEBs the CCU adopted a systematic approach to ensure the maximum degree of objectivity and equity of treatment. It is a matter for individual CEBs to determine how they will use allocated funds, as well as the "own income" funds available to them from repayable grants, in the most effective manner possible (subject to meeting the appropriate eligibility criteria and a number of limits and thresholds that are in place). Some Boards may choose to commit all of their available funding as projects present themselves, even if this means that their funding is exhausted relatively early in the year, while others may choose to reserve some funding until later in the year so that they are in a position to support other high quality projects that emerge at that time. This would explain why some Boards may have utilised their Measure 1 funding earlier in the year than other Boards.

It is a basic expectation of Boards that they will manage the delivery of their support Programmes on the basis of their allocated amount over the year as a whole. As with all State-funded assistance, CEBs are expected to prioritise and manage available funding in a targeted and effective manner. While it is vital that CEBs continue to promote and support enterprise development at local level, due to the finite nature of public finances, it is not always possible for a CEB to provide financial assistance to every eligible project that presents itself. This is an operating reality with which all CEBs are already familiar.

As part of the normal yearly budgetary cycle, some Boards will request additional funding to support a variety of expenditures beyond their original allocations. Such requests are made by CEBs in the knowledge that these requests can only be considered should overall additional funding become available.

As part of the CCU's on-going management of available funding for 2008, the Unit will conduct a review of CEB spending in late Summer. It has generally been the case that a number of Boards are not in a position to spend all of their annual allocations. Accordingly, should surplus funding become available, this will be reallocated by the CCU to any Boards that are in a position to spend additional funds, subject to thorough assessment of the rationale and the justification for the level of funding being requested. It will be in the context of this process that any additional funding requests from individual Boards will be considered.

Out of the 35 CEBs located around the country, 7 have currently indicated to the CCU that they could utilise additional Measure 1 funding. These seven Boards are Cavan, Cork South, Dun Laoghaire/Rathdown, Kerry, Kildare, Laois and Westmeath.