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Howlin welcomes agreement on EU Cohesion Budget

Minister for Public Expenditure & Reform, Brendan Howlin TD, today (8 February 2013) welcomed the agreement reached by the European Council on the EU’s Budget for 2014-2020, which will see Ireland’s Structural Funds increase under the next funding round.  

The Irish experience of Cohesion policy has been very positive and Structural and Cohesion funds have played an important role in the development of Ireland’s economy over then years. While the precise details in relation to Ireland’s allocation have still to be worked out, I am pleased that the funding level will increase over that for the current period. 

Against the background of an overall cut in the EU Budget, this is a considerable achievement and is due to the consistent efforts of the Government to maximize support from Europe for our Structural Funds programmes.  The European Council has today decided that the budget for Cohesion Funding will be around €325 billion for the 2014-2020 round.  Given that the overall Budget is facing cuts, this represents a considerable investment programme and will ensure that Cohesion policy remains a significant contributor to ensuring that Europe retains its position as amajor player in the world’s economy. Cohesion Policy is a key driver of the growth and jobs agenda which is the focus of our Presidency. 

 It is the one of the primary instruments available to the Union to drive investment and to promote growth and jobs across Europe in the years ahead. The Minister welcomed the special allocation for the Border, Midlands and Western Region.  

 The hard work that the Taoiseach and I have undertaken in articulating and advocating a special provision for the BMW region due to the significant economic downturn it has experienced has been rewarded with a special provision of €100m for the region.  The region no longer qualifies as a transition region as its GDP per capita exceeds 90% of the EU average and so it is facing a reduction in its allocation.  The challenges it faces have been recognized by the Council, however, with this special allocation.

The Minister said he was also pleased that the Southern & Eastern Region would receive an increase on its 2007-13 allocation, albeit as a result of the deteriorating economic situation, particularly in relation to the labour market where unemployment remains the key challenge. The Minister welcomed the announcement of a Youth Employment Initiative and said he expected that Ireland, whose two regions have youth unemployment rates in excess of the 25% threshold set down by the Council, will benefit from it. The focus on youth unemployment is something the Irish Government had been pressing for.  Our rate of youth unemployment is one of the worst in Europe and investment is urgently needed to address this crisis.  

 The Minister said he was particularly pleased with the special provision of €150 million that will see the PEACE Programme for Northern Ireland and the border region of Ireland continue.   I believe we should have a new programme because I believe in the values of the programme and the contribution it has made to supporting reconciliation, to the creation of a shared society, and to addressing the legacy of the troubles.  Significant challenges remain, however, and addressing them is important for the longer term viability of the peace process.  

The Minister, who last week shared a platform in Brussels with Peter Robinson and Martin McGuinness at a seminar on the PEACE Programme which was hosted by Regional Policy Commissioner Johannes Hahn, has been working with the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste to ensure that funding, which was not provided for in the original proposal from the European Commission, would continue.

Minister Howlin said that the agreement on the EU Budget would facilitate the ongoing negotiation of the legislative package for Cohesion Policy for the period 2014-2020 which is taking place under the Irish Presidency of the Council of Ministers.  The Minister, who recently addressed the European Parliament’s Regional Development Committee on the issue, said that he was committed on behalf of the Presidency to working in co-operation with the Parliament as co-legislator to reach agreement on the package.