§ Lord Hyltonasked Her Majesty's Government:
What amount of European Union aid funds is at present not allocated; over what period it will be used; and what is the likely split between continents and between sectors, such as health, education and debt relief. [HL2733]
§ Baroness Amos:.The EC allocates its aid budget on an annual basis through two channels. The regular budget provides funds for its external actions chapter. The European Development Fund, an extra budgetary instrument, provides assistance to the Africa, Caribbean and Pacific countries.
In the first instance the amounts unallocated for 2003 and in the preliminary draft budget (PDB) for 2004 are shown below. These represent the difference between the amounts earmarked for projects and programmes and the ceiling that applies to each budget line.
Amounts unallocated by budget (£ millions) 2003 Budget 2004 PDB External actions 107 167 It is reasonable to expect that the margin of unallocated funds from the 2003 budget will be committed this year in full. The duration of spend will depend on the length of the project or programme and its start date. Commitments will be made through standard budgetary procedures.
Negotiations over the 2004 budget, which start in May and end in December, will determine the extent of the unallocated margin next year.
In the case of the EDF, the equivalent of £950 million originally allocated for projects in the following African countries has been withheld for political, security or programming reasons: Comoros, Liberia, Eritrea, Sudan, Haiti, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Burundi, Ivory Coast, Togo, Central African Republic, Zimbabwe, Angola, Madagascar.
It is not possible to determine what regions or sectors would have been supported by the unallocated budget or EDF funds as they are allocated according to need on a case-by-case basis.