Barry Cowen (Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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233. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development the status of the €5 million allocated to the Leader programme as outlined in budget 2018; the amount that has been spent; the way in which the money has been spent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27252/18]

Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Subhead A6 of my Department's Vote shows an increase in funding of €5 million for the LEADER programme in 2018 compared to 2017.  The allocation under the Subhead has increased from €30 million in 2017, to €35 million in 2018.  In addition, a further €5 million has been assigned to the LEADER programme from capital allocations carried forward from 2017.

The programme is administered by Local Action Groups (LAGs) which deliver funding in accordance with Local Development Strategies that have been agreed for each LAG area.

Expenditure to date in 2018 under the programme amounts to over €6 million. This includes the administration costs of the LAGs, the cost of their engagement with communities to generate projects, expenditure on individual projects, and the running costs of the programme.

Over 1,000 projects with a value in excess of €29 million have been approved by the LAGs to date, with more than 340 additional projects with a value of €19 million at an earlier stage in the approvals process.

Expenditure on the programme will increase significantly over the coming months as projects are completed and promoters submit claims to my Department for payment.