Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)
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Question 315: To ask the Minister for Community, Equality and Gaeltacht Affairs the reasons the Minister is seeking to divert funding from the Leader programme to other Departments; if any discussions have taken place with the Leader groups in relation to such a change; the amount of funding that has being drawn down by Leader groups for rural projects to date since the Estimates were agreed; the projects that have drawn down such funding; the employment opportunity areas that the Minister feels have not being covered by such projects that will in his estimation permit 700 employment opportunities to be created; if agreement is reached with the EU Commission on what procedure must the Minister then adopt to divert such funding given that the Dáil passed the Estimates for his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35290/10]

Pat Carey (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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The main objectives of the Rural Development Programme (RDP) are to improve the quality of life in rural areas and facilitate the diversification of the rural economy, and the individual measures under the Programme, including indicative allocations, are as follows

Diversification into non-agricultural activities for farm families - €16.66m;

Support for business creation and development - €48.26m;

Encouragement of tourism activities - €45.4m;

Basic services for the economy and rural population - €49.61m;

Village renewal and development - €54.2m;

Conservation and upgrading of the rural heritage - €51.7m;

Training and information on adapted and new skills - €29.45m; and

Implementing co-operation projects – €10.7m.

Details of the expenditure to date under each programme measure and for each Local Action Group (LAG) are set out in Tables 1 and 2 below. I consider that the provision of details in relation to each individual project for each one of the 36 LAGs would not be feasible in the time frame available. If, however, the Deputy requires information in relation to any particular project or area, I will be glad to seek to facilitate such a request.

I am pleased with the progress to date under the RDP, which continues to facilitate access to significant financial resources for rural communities since it started in 2009. This has resulted in the proliferation of innovative and sustainable development projects all over the country, which are providing invaluable support to rural communities in these difficult times, and there is no question of funds being diverted away from the RDP.

The RDP currently has registered project activity of €71 million, with almost €30 million at an advanced stage of development. Expenditure to date amounts to almost €47 million, which includes funding for a diverse range of projects from support for micro-enterprise in rural areas to the build and maintenance of community infrastructure and the provision of training in a variety of disciplines for rural dwellers. I am confident that all of the activity funded under the RDP to date is contributing to the creation of the right conditions for the generation of sustainable, long-term job opportunities in rural areas.

My Department and I will be working closely with Minister Batt O'Keeffe and his Department in the coming months to promote increased co-operation between LAGs and County Enterprise Boards in order to ensure that we maximise the impact of all of the funding available and fully support enterprise and job creation in rural areas. I can assure the Deputy that my Department will continue to work with rural communities through their LAGs to explore all possible funding opportunities under the RDP.

TABLE 1: Expenditure to date under each RDP programme measure

TABLE 2: Expenditure to date under the RDP for each Local Action Group (LAG)