Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 60: To ask the Minister for Finance if, in view of the current economic climate, he will prepare an updated National Strategic Reference Framework for Ireland, setting out the policy context within which the funding available to Ireland under the Regional Competitiveness and Employment Objective over the 2007 to 2013 period through the European Regional Development Fund and the European Social Fund may be applied; the amount that will accrue to Ireland through the ERDF and ESF funds during the years 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013; the amount of this funding that has already been allocated; if any of these funds remain to be allocated or will be re-allocated; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14306/10]

Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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Ireland's National Strategic Reference Framework (NSRF) was approved by the European Commission in July 2007. The document, in accordance with EU Regulations governing EU Structural Funds, sets out the strategic direction for the deployment of the EU Structural Funds (€750m) allocated to Ireland over the 2007-13 period under the Regional Competitiveness and Employment (RCE) Objective through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the European Social Fund (ESF).

The strategy is being implemented through three operational programmes; a national Human Capital Investment ESF OP managed by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Innovation and two regional ERDF OPs managed by the Border, Midland and Western and Southern and Eastern and Regional Assemblies.

The NSRF is strategic in nature with sufficient flexibility in the priorities identified. Therefore, it is not proposed to update the document. However, as provided for the EU Regulations, the BMW OP and the HCI OP were renegotiated with the EU Commission due to the changed socio-economic circumstances. The amendments, consistent with the NSRF, will ensure that the important objectives are met despite the changed socio-economic and budgetary circumstances and that Ireland will drawdown its full EU Structural Funds allocation over the 2007-13 period.

The annual allocations are set out in the table 1 below and reflect the full amount of structural funds available to Ireland over the 2007-2013 programming period. Table 2 below sets out the same information broken down by region.

A further €151m has been allocated under ERDF for smaller Territorial Co-operation Operational Programmes, including the PEACE III Programme and the INTERREG Programmes for Ireland/Northern Ireland/Scotland and Ireland/Wales.