Dodds Calls For Further Peace Fund Payments

European Minister Diane Dodds has called for a continuation of Northern Ireland's peace fund during a special hearing in Brussels into special EU programmes.

The Peace III Programme, worth some €333 million to Northern Ireland and the border counties, is due to end in 2013.

However, on Tuesday morning, the DUP Member of the European Parliament Ms Dodds called for a continuation of the fund past its deadline, saying that many problems "still remain".

Ms Dodds said the problems were highlighted by a rise in dissident republican activity, and that communities were still finding it difficult to "peacefully live beside eachother".

"In these communities there remains a high level of generational unemployment, low educational attainment and poor health.

"Therefore, I believe that any future peace funding and any extension to the peace funding past 2013 must be inclusive of our young people through access to training and employment, allowing them to become stakeholders in our future," Ms Dodds said.

However, the minister said she also believed there should be a revision of those who currently have "preferential access" to peace funding, such as ex-prisoner groups.

"We need to ask ourselves at what point do people stop being an ex-prisoner and once again become a citizen.

"Northern Ireland is a better place than it was 20 years ago and peace funding has contributed to that progress. It has been far from perfect but this funding contributed greatly to communities who have experienced significant difficulties due to the violent events of the last 30 years."

The Peace III programme is managed by the Special EU Programming Body, which set a number of named priorities, such as reconciling communities, contributing to a shared society and funding the Northern Ireland Task Force.

The fund was also designed to cover a diversity of areas including transnational and cross-border cooperation, networking, energy efficiency and dealing with climate change, the creation and maintenance of employment opportunities and developing skills, investment in research, and support for enterprises.

During a meeting at the end of last year with First Minister and Deputy First Minister Peter Robinson and Martin McGuinness, President of the European Commission José Manuel Durão Barroso said the European Union had supported Northern Ireland with more than £2.5bn over the last 20 years.

"We have seen good progress. I want to see more. Today, I have asked the Task Force to go back to Belfast early in the New Year to give a new momentum to our joint work. It is time to renew and reinvigorate our collective effort."

However, despite Mr Barroso's indications that a Peace III fund could be on the table, Europe's budget is currently squeezed, with the UK Government calling for a freeze on members' contribution to the EU.

Ongoing problems with the Greek economy are also causing intense uncertainty as the country assess whether it requires either another multi-billion bailout or prepares to jeopardise the European Union's existence by defaulting on its debts.

Either outcome would pose a serious threat to the provision on an extended peace fund.

(DW/KMcA)