A reduction in LEADER funding for Galway from €12.2 million to €9 million has been labelled “a massive blow” by Independent TD Sean Canney.
Minister Heather Humphreys of the Department of Rural and Community Development (DRCD) this week unveiled funding for the programme of €180 million, and outlined a breakdown of how much each county will receive.
Deputy Canney stated that Galway is one of only two counties to receive a reduced allocation, which he said is “unfair and needs to be explained”. He said:
“Galway are being penalised and will now receive €46.63 per head of population which is less than half the amount allocated to neighbouring counties.”
“I will be calling on the government and the DRCD to explain themselves and account for such a drastic cut in funding, and why Galway was singled out for a cut of 25% in funding.”
The LEADER programme is run in the west of the county by Forum Connemara and Galway Rural Development, who have spent all of the allocated funding in pervious programmes according to Canney.
Development of community facilities, a boost in rural enterprise and enhancements of rural towns and villages are just some of the benefits that have come from previous LEADER funding, he added.
As well as this, Galway is part of the North and West Regional Assembly, a region which the EU has identified as an area in decline due to a lack of government investment.
The Galway east TD said this, combined with the positive benefits the county has seen in the past, should prove that Galway needs an increase in funding.
“There is no logic in this decision,” he concluded.
The funding allocations under the LEADER programme, which will run from 2023 -2027, are broken down as follows:
The highest allocation was Co. Cork, which received €16.8 million, while the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue’s local constituency Donegal, received the second highest in the programme.