Seán Conlan (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Question 323: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the current position (details supplied) of an application for funding with Pobal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33183/12]

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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Funding of €314m is available under the Rural Development Programme (RDP) 2007-2013 for allocation to qualifying projects up to the end of 2013. Currently there are 35 Local Action Groups contracted, on my Department's behalf, to deliver the RDP throughout the country and these groups are the principal decision-makers in relation to the allocation of project funding. Such decisions are made in the context of the local development strategy of the individual groups and in line with Departmental operating rules and EU regulations.

Projects that require funding of €150,000 or more must seek final approval from the Department before a final decision can be made by the Local Action Group. Pobal have no involvement in the assessment and approval of such projects. The project referred to in the question is one such project and funding of €322,528.41 has been sought. The assessment of higher value projects (projects with a grant approval of €150,000 or more) usually involves detailed consultations between my Department and the relevant local development company. It frequently necessitates the provision of further documentation or clarifications. It may also, in some instances, result in modifications to the project proposed to ensure best value for money and compliance with all the necessary regulations, both national and European, governing the activities funded under the programme.

These assessments also consider whether the project as proposed addresses the needs of the local community in the best possible way. I am sure you will appreciate that a full and detailed assessment of all projects is vital. It must be remembered that currently, project expenditure under Axes 3 and 4 of the Rural Development Programme 2007 – 2013 is co-financed by the European Union at a rate of 85% and, accordingly, comes within the remit of a strict regulatory regime which requires that each project must be compliant before any funding is awarded.

An application regarding the project in question has not as yet been submitted to the Rural Development Section of my Department. I understand that the Local Development Company dealing with the application does not have sufficient funding available under the Basic Services Measure of the RDP for the proposed project. Recently, as part of a number of changes that I introduced, I announced an additional €10m in funding under the Basic Services Measure of the RDP which is in the process of being allocated to the 35 Local Development Companies. Each Company was asked to make a submission regarding its need for additional funding and the overall value of those submissions is approximately €34m. Accordingly, in the context of the available funding and the level of demand, it will not be possible to allocate funding to all eligible projects.

The project mentioned by the Deputy will be evaluated in that context.