Carol Nolan (Offaly, Sinn Fein)
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174. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of projects in receipt of EU funding under his Department in which partnership between an institution here and in the North was necessary to receive the funding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9239/17]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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My recent follow-up reply to your PQ No. 124 of 2 February 2017 provided details of the recipients of INTERREG funding within our education system. There are no other instances where it was necessary to have a partnership between an institution here and in Northern Ireland in order to receive EU funding under this Department.

In reply to another recent PQ you submitted (ref: 5015/17) I informed you that no EU funds have been provided to my Department for the purposes of cross-border education projects. The reply goes on to say that my Department supports cross-border co-operation and exchange projects which are managed by parties external to the Department. Applicants for funding must adhere to the following eligibility criteria:

- Clear and meaningful cross border collaboration

- Cross-community and interdenominational participation

- Social inclusion attributes

- Adding value to the education systems of both jurisdiction

- Pedagogical value of collaborative activity proposed

There is no requirement for applicants to engage in a partnership to acquire funding under my Departments cross-border education initiative.