Shane Cassells (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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378. To ask the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if she will review the policy in her Department of excluding equine-based or equine-related projects from assistance or financial support through the Leader programme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11325/17]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The race and sport horse industries were deemed as ineligible activities under the 2007-2013 LEADER programme. However, ancillary activities for the provision of services to those industries were eligible for support, 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.

On 28 February last I announced that I will be 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.