§ Lord Inglewoodasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether the approval of actions, plans and hence specific projects under Objective 2 of the European Social Funds in the north west of England would be expedited in the light of the economic consequences of foot and mouth disease. [HL1391]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions (Lord Whitty)The noble Lord has asked about Objective 2 of the European Social Funds in the north west of England. This particular objective 2 programme is part of the overall European Structural Funds programme but is funded solely by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and receives no grant from the European Social Fund (ESF).
86WAThe Objective 2 programme in the north west was officially launched at the Programme Monitoring/ Regional Committee on 30 March 2001. At this meeting a timetable was put into place by which the programme would be expedited. This timetable aims to balance the needs of getting the programme under way as quickly as possible and ensuring that the necessary structures and monitoring systems are put in place correctly.
At the meeting on 30 March, the PM/RC delegated authority to the European Programme Secretariat to enable it to deal with an accelerated application for £1 million ERDF to match North West Development Agency funding for business support measures to assist the rural and tourism sectors. This application was in full compliance with the eligibility rules under the programme and was subsequently submitted by the NWDA and an offer issued by the secretariat.
Under that project, business support agencies can obtain additional funding for an enhanced service to those sectors in the north west hit particularly hard by the drop in tourism and rural business.