Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

502. To ask the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the reason services to the equine industry appear to have been removed from the list of projects eligible to be funded from LEADER funding in view of the fact this is having a huge impact to the LEADER programme in counties such as Meath in which the equine industry is a substantial employer in the rural area; if this will be reviewed to allow such projects to remain eligible for LEADER funding; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10402/17]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The race and sport horse industries were deemed as ineligible activities under the 2007-2013 LEADER programme. However, support for ancillary activities for the provision of services to those industries was eligible where this was in keeping with the Local Development Strategies developed in each area. Ancillary activities included a broad range of actions, such as equestrian centre and riding school projects. In light of the considerable level of investment already undertaken in ancillary activities under the previous programme, it was decided that support for such activities would not be eligible under the 2014-2020 LEADER programme. However, in the period since I launched the implementation of the new LEADER Programme in July last year, it has become clear to me that there is still some demand for further investment in ancillary activities, particularly where this contributes to rural tourism.

I have therefore announced that I am amending the ineligible list of activities to allow for funding of ancillary activities for the equine industry. This will be on a targeted basis, with a particular emphasis on ensuring that the supported infrastructure is widely accessible to the public.