Like any planning process the quality of information is critical. Given the scope of the Strategy the information gathering exercise in this instance is enormous.

Data Sets

An elaborate data collection exercise is currently underway. This is being conducted jointly by the six Local Authorities in the South East. After a rigorous selection process a company called IRIS have been engaged to work on the process. Many of the Board members would have been contacted directly by people from the company. This exercise should largely be completed by the end of January if all of the information that has been committed is made available on time. I wish to thank those members of the Board for their help sourcing material for this data collection exercise. The process that we went through at the previous board meeting was also used to inform this exercise, in other words to identify data that is necessary and to quantify its importance.

Audit of Service Provision

Like the data sets it is a major task to conduct an audit of the total public service delivery for any county. A sub committee of the board was established to look at this area and it developed proposals on how best this exercise could be tackled. It has been difficult to source the appropriate expertise. After considerable trawl a suitable consultant has been identified. The target date for completing the audit is February 2001.

National Development Plan and associated Operational Programmes

The operational programme for the Southern Eastern region has now been published. The programme is in four sections and the total volume runs to over 350 pages. As has been the practice I have identified the main headings under the OP. Some members have access to the full volumes and I can arrange to have copies for other members on request.

In Recent times the County Development Boards have been charged with the task of co-ordinating the deliver of social inclusion measures. It is important for the board to establish itself how it might propose to address this particular responsibility.

For the purpose of putting all of this in context it is important mention briefly the background in the context of the National Development Plan. Ireland's Community Support Framework (CSF) was signed in Dublin on 7 July. The CSF is the legal document which gives effect to the National Development Plan (NDP) which was submitted by the Government to the European Commission in November 1999. The CSF sets out the overall strategy and priorities for the spending of e57bn (in 1999 prices) over the seven year period 2000-2006. Most of the negotiations between the Commission and Government on the CSF/NDP
concluded in late March .

To recap, the NDP's strategy is to continue sustainable economic and employment growth and to consolidate and improve Ireland's international competitiveness, together with fostering balanced regional development, promoting social inclusion, and contributing to the protection and improvement of the environment. It is important to note that the NDP covers a significant programme of national investment not co-financed by the EU. In fact, EU co-financing (e3.2 bn) will be less than 6% on average of total expenditure. A wide range of Government spending, regardless of the sources of funding, will henceforth be subject to the programming and evaluation techniques built into EU co-financed programmes.

Of particular significance are the six Operational Programmes (OPs) which contain the detailed measures, i.e. the funding programmes which are envisaged. In general, the OPs provide more details about the expenditure programmes than those outlined in the NDP. Submitted in April and May, these were reviewed by the Commission and were the subject of negotiations with the Irish side. They have since been formally approved.

The OPs cover the following areas:
Economic and Social Infrastructure
Productive Investment
Employment and Human Resources Development
Investment in the Border, Midlands and West Region
Investment in the Southern and Eastern Region
PEACE Programme (to 2004) for Border Region and Northern Ireland

A programme for technical assistance has also been agreed.

Many of these schemes involve spending specifically earmarked for local authorities, while most of the others are based on competitive applications. In this context it should be noted that all proposals must be in accordance with the County Strategies as prepared by the County Development Boards.

Each Programme Complement contains some 4 -5 pages of useful information on
each of the schemes referred to below, including the following:

A description of the scheme and its objectives
Details on project selection.
Financial management arrangements.
Indicators to monitor roll-out
Monitoring and reporting arrangements

Examples of some of the measures / schemes covered under the Regional
Operational Programmes include:

Non-National Roads - including the EU Co-Financed Specific Improvement Grant Scheme, and the Restoration Programme

Rural Water - for the upgrading of group water schemes

Waste Management - to support infrastructure identified under regional/ local waste management strategies

Urban and Village Renewal - a continuation of the existing scheme for local authorities

Seaport Infrastructure and Fishery Harbours

Culture Recreation and Sports - including sports and recreation facilities, arts and culture facilities, habitat protection and conservation, heritage conservation, and inland waterways

Tourism - including the development of major tourism attractions, special interest pursuits, tourism and environmental management, and marine tourism

Microenterprises - covering the operation of the County and City Enterprise Boards

Regional Innovation Strategies - directed at the Institutes of Technology for the creation of a network of "incubator centres" which will support the commercialisation of research and development activities to the benefit of local firms

Forestry

Childcare - including the capital grant scheme for childcare facilities, support for childcare staffing costs, and quality improvement programmes

Equality - to support women's access to the labour market, to help parents combine work and family responsibilities

Community Development and Family Support - including community development centres to provide special services for lone parent families, young mothers and others considered in need of extra support

Youth Services - including special projects for disadvantaged youth, youth information centres providing information and support to young people, and the Young People's Facilities and Services Fund to support the provision of services and facilities in the local drugs task force areas and designated urban areas

Local Development - to provide funding to area-based partnership companies, community groups and the Local Drugs Task Forces on the basis of local action plans designed to counter social exclusion and drug abuse in urban areas, and to support the pilot Territorial Employment Pacts

General Rural Development - to support area-based rural development initiatives along the lines of the LEADER groups during the 1994 -99 period, and to support the Western Development Fund

In the case of the Economic and Social Infrastructure Operational Programme,
the following is covered:

National Roads - including national primary and secondary routes

Public Transport - including DTI public transport and traffic management, investment in mainline rail, public transport in other urban areas, regional bus services, and pilot rural public transport services.

Environmental Infrastructure - including waste water and water supply works, management and rehabilitation of infrastructure, providing an adequate supply of serviced land, and coastal protection projects

Housing - including provision for the construction of local authority housing, support for voluntary housing, access to affordable housing through a range of schemes (such as the shared ownership and affordable housing schemes), improvements, redevelopment and refurbishment to existing local authority housing stock via a number of schemes, and provision of accommodation for those with special needs, such as the homeless and travellers.

Regional Issues

There are quite a number of areas of public policy more appropriate to be addressed at regional level rather than at local level it would be useful for the Board to consider and to identify such issues. In this context it may also be necessary to identify mechanisms by which these can be effectively addressed at local level.

Rural Transport

The local LEADER agency (Barrow Nore Sure Rural Development Ltd.) has for some time been addressing the issue of rural transport. The County Development Board should be aware of their initiatives in this respect. With the Board's agreement they will be available to make a presentation on the day of the meeting.