Speech by Minister Donohoe at EU Funding Conference
From Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform
By: Minister for Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform; Paschal Donohoe
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Last updated on
From Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform
By: Minister for Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform; Paschal Donohoe
Published on
Last updated on
Connecting, Communicating and Collaborating - Irish Regions Cooperating across the EU: How local authorities can engage in European Programmes
Radisson Blu Hotel, Athlone
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Good afternoon,
I am very happy to be here with you today at this conference promoting local authority engagement in European Union programmes.
I would like to begin by expressing my gratitude to the organisers of today’s conference - Cllr Michael Murphy, Head of Irish Delegation to the Committee of the Regions; Teresa Lennon Head of Irish Regions European Office; and their colleagues in the Regional Assemblies.
I would also like to thank the national contact points and representatives of the EU programmes who have joined us here today especially those who have travelled from across Europe. Your time, interest and willingness to share of your knowledge and experience is very much appreciated and is a positive demonstration of EU cooperation and collaboration.
Now, I know that today is about funding and encouraging greater engagement by Irish partners, however, while funding is important and indeed essential to facilitate cooperation, the European Union means more than financial transfers and the internal market. It embodies a commitment to common values, a shared solidarity, a common prosperity and a determination that the Union be a champion of peace and democracy.
At no point since its foundation has it been more important to defend those values than now, in the face of Russia’s continued illegal and immoral war on Ukraine. Against these ongoing attacks, Ireland and the EU remain resolute in their solidarity and support for Ukraine.
In the context of today’s conference, it is heartening to know that despite all the disruption and destruction being inflicted on Ukraine – that they and their neighbours continue to cooperate through a range of INTERREG cross-border, transnational and neighbourhood programmes, demonstrating the positive impact of cooperation and collaboration.
Back in 2019, I was asked to write a foreword for a publication by the Northern and Western Regional Assembly marking 30 years of INTERREG programmes and partnerships.
On that occasion I said that “INTERREG is not so much about working across borders, as building links between regions. It lies at the heart of what the European Union is all about” – this remains true today. Cooperation between people and institutions is a key enabler for the European project and one that requires promotion and encouragement.
This year marks 50 years of Ireland in the European Union – a milestone in the modern history of this island. Our membership has played a pivotal role in Ireland’s social and economic transformation.
Most of you grew up as part of the EU and have experienced directly the benefits that membership has brought.
Across the last 50 years we have moved from being a net beneficiary of EU support to a net contributor. We have moved from spending large levels of EU Structural Funds on infrastructure, such as roads, bridges, universities and hospitals, to focusing a reduced level of EU support on supporting research and innovation to assist our transition to a greener and digital future.
Today our major infrastructural investment objectives are set out in the National Development Plan, which incorporates a total public investment of €165 billion over the ten-year period 2021 to 2030.
The National Development Plan seeks to ensure that a greater level of development and investment is focused within our rural villages, our towns and our cities so that our three regions can grow in line with the National Planning Framework.
At the same time, EU Funds continue to support projects across all regions of the country. As Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform, I have overall policy responsibility for Cohesion Policy Funds that amount to €1.3 billion for the 2021– 2027 period.
Supplemented by significant co-funding from the Irish Government, this investment will make a real difference to our regions and communities.
Ireland values Cohesion Policy Funding as an important tool to stimulate economic growth, promote social cohesion and to reduce disparities between the regions of the EU, especially for the most underdeveloped areas of the Union.
Ireland has benefited from support from Cohesion Policy funds in the past and can be viewed as a model that can guide more recent EU members, candidate States, including Ukraine and those aspiring to candidate status.
Alongside this, is the NextGenerationEU recovery instrument, which is central to the EU’s response to the global pandemic. Ireland is expected to receive more than €900 million in grants under the Recovery and Resilience Facility.
Ireland’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan will help build a sustainable, equitable, green and digital recovery that complements and supports the government’s broader recovery effort.
The Brexit Adjustment Reserve represents an important response by the European Union to the challenges posed by the departure of the UK, helping counter the adverse economic and social consequences of Brexit. As the Member State most impacted by Brexit, Ireland will receive just over €1 billion, the largest allocation for any Member State.
In addition to these funds, Irish agriculture continues to benefit from the Common Agricultural Policy and the Irish economy, Irish business and employment in Ireland continue to thrive due to the massive opportunities offered by the Single Market.
EU programmes offer numerous opportunities for Irish Local Authorities and other bodies to access EU support and to collaborate with partners across the Union. Many of you already have experience of involvement in these programmes and I hope that today you, our National Contact Points and the representatives of the funds can encourage continued and additional engagement.
Ireland has been allocated a total of €293.4 million under the INTERREG component of the 2021-2027 Cohesion Policy Funds – which represents nearly a quarter of our overall allocation and over 40% of our overall ERDF support.
In March of 2021, the government decided to allocate €234.4 million to PEACEPLUS with the remaining €58.93 million being distributed across three transnational programmes: Northern, Periphery and Arctic - €13.15 million, North West Europe €32.77 million and Atlantic Area €13 million.
Ireland values INTERREG programmes and has benefited from participation both economically and in terms of gaining experience through co-operation. Positive elements of these programmes include:
The promotion of territorial cooperation in regions;
The facilitation and enhancement of cooperation between people and institutions across administrative and national borders;
Contribution to an enlarged knowledge pool and the development of innovative solutions across Europe;
Strengthening of capacities of the public sector and territorial cohesion;
Supporting European Integration through increased trust and understanding and, consequently, cohesion in Europe.
Within Ireland, the Regional Assemblies have a role in promoting the programmes and assisting applicants and projects and sit along Member State representatives on programme Monitoring and Steering Committees.
They are also partners in a number of INTERREG projects. I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge all of this often unseen work and express my gratitude to all of those involved.
As well as providing a showcase for the different funds, today’s conference also involves the launch of an interactive map developed by the Irish Regions European Office and the Regional Assemblies based on details from the KEEP.EU website.
The map, shortly to be introduced by Teresa, visually sets out information on Local Authorities and regional assembly participation in INTERREG programmes benefiting local citizens and communities across Ireland.
Of these programmes, INTERREG Europe funding is especially relevant to Local Authorities as it aims to fund organisations responsible for policies relating to regional development. Irish partners were involved in 26 projects with a value of over €42 million in the last funding period of 2014-2020.
Examples of these projects included INTENSIFY, which targeted carbon reduction through behaviour change, and included a pilot roll out in Cork City Council.
The Local Flavours project supported Waterford City and County Council to enhance and implement their sustainable tourism strategy for the county, promoting cultural heritage in Ireland’s Ancient East and finding parallels with similar regions across Europe.
Likewise, the North West Europe programme has been fruitful for Local Authorities with over €6 million allocated to county councils and their associated energy agencies and ports across the country between 2014-2020; including Cork, Mayo, Dublin City, Tipperary, Kerry and Louth.
The impact of those projects has been of great benefit – achieving elements of development plans for example through district heating networks in Dublin, offshore wind systems in Mayo and rural energy communities in Kerry and Tipperary to name just a few.
Similarly, in the Northern Periphery and Arctic programme, Donegal County Council and Leitrim County Council are partners in the Smarter Energy Communities in Northern and Arctic Regions (SECURE) project. This project aims to foster energy-secure communities through the promotion of energy efficiency solutions in public housing, lighting and public buildings.
Each of these examples demonstrates the impact and the innovation that is delivered through EU programmes. And they underline the importance of this funding, the importance to communities, to citizens, and to delivering better outcomes for our regions and our country.
Before I close, I want to turn for a moment to the immense contribution that EU funding has made to shared peace, as well as shared prosperity, here on the island of Ireland.
Since the 1990s, successive iterations of the EU’s INTERREG and PEACE programmes have brought investment of some €3.3 billion across Northern Ireland and the Border counties of Ireland.
These programmes have been key drivers of cross-border cooperation and cohesion for three decades now, making a real difference to the lives of tens of thousands of beneficiaries. I believe that they have played a vital role in our shared journey of peace, reconciliation and progression.
I am delighted that we are now about to begin a new chapter in this story. The new €1.1 billion PEACEPLUS programme will succeed both the current PEACE and INTERREG programmes, supporting peace and cross-border co-operation until 2029. PEACEPLUS will be the largest cross-border programme to date.
The ambition of this exciting new programme has been matched by the goodwill and spirit of partnership displayed by the EU and the UK in working with Ireland to realise it. PEACEPLUS represents a shared recognition that support for peace and prosperity on this island is as important today as it has been at any stage since the first, tentative steps towards a peace process.
As many of you here will be aware, the new PEACEPLUS programme will open its first funding Calls for Applications over the coming months and will be managed by the Special EU Programmes Body. I am looking forward to seeing the real impact that PEACEPLUS projects will have over the coming years.
In conclusion, I am reminded of the motto of the European Union "United in diversity”. These three words succinctly encapsulate how Europeans have come together to work for peace and prosperity, while at the same time being enriched by the continent's different cultures and traditions.
INTERREG and other EU programmes working across borders play a key role in supporting the process of creating links, exchanging views, understanding differences, working together, promoting and maintaining peace. Long may they continue to do so and long may all of you continue to engage, cooperate and collaborate.
Thank you.