§ Mr. BlizzardTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will introduce measures to assist councils to obtain the matched funding necessary to access ERDF grants. [6160]
§ Angela EagleEuropean Structural Funds, including the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), make an important contribution to economic development in the regions. The issues behind matched funding requirements for ERDF and the need for synergy between European and domestic regeneration programmes are being considered in the comprehensive review of regeneration expenditure in England now underway. However, as a net contributor to the EU budget, the UK also has an interest in ensuring that the best value for money is obtained from Structural Funds' expenditure. Requiring applicants to provide some level of matching funding gives them a strong incentive to produce projects which do represent good value for money and to make a real choice between competing priorities.