Tom Fleming (Kerry South, Independent)
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172. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government if he will provide information on Leader funding (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31875/14]

Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
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In line with the ‘bottom-up’ approach to rural development, there are 35 Local Action Groups (LAGs) contracted, on my Department’s behalf, to deliver the LEADER elements of the Rural Development Programme 2007-2013 (RDP) throughout the country. The LAGs are the principal decision-makers in relation to the allocation of project funding. In compliance with a European Court of Justice judgment, my Department hasn’t been able to publish information in relation to personal beneficiaries under the LEADER programme and so only publishes details of payments to the Local Action Groups that administer the Programme. However, agreement has now been reached at EU level which will allow details to be published for the previous financial year. Therefore payments in respect of the 2014 EU financial year will be published in May 2015.

The following table details the level of project expenditure to date for each Local Action Group under the RDP from 2009 to June 2014. In the context of the next EU programming period 2014-2020 the continuation of the LEADER approach in rural areas is critical for the future development of rural Ireland. In this context it is the responsibility of my Department to ensure that all funding allocated under the LEADER elements of the RDP is compliant with the regulatory framework and is expended on the basis of sound financial management practices. My Department is currently working on developing the systems required to ensure that the funding is allocated and spent in the most effective way at a local level for the 2014-2020 period.

As outlined in the draft Rural Development Programme, which has been submitted to the European Commission and is available on my Department’s website at it is intended that there will be a two-step Local Action Group selection process that will ensure that all entities interested in delivering a Local Development Strategy have the required capacity to do so. Once the strategy is in place, successful delivery entities will be required to put in place a series of systems outlined by my Department to support their effective and efficient delivery of the LEADER element of the RDP. These systems will include effective decision making practices to ensure that funding is targeted to maximise its impact. Transparent governance arrangements, sound financial management practices and comprehensive appeals mechanisms will also be required in order to support the efficient and effective delivery of LEADER interventions. These systems will be subject to on-going monitoring by my Department and other entities, including audit authorities, to ensure compliance. I intend that appropriate comprehensive management systems will be put in place to support the delivery of the LEADER elements of the RDP 2014-2020 in a manner that targeted, cost effective and efficient use of funding, maximising the benefit for rural communities.

Table