Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2006-09-26-Speech-2-382"
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"en.20060926.29.2-382"2
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"Mr President, I welcome the strategic guidelines on cohesion and the three priority areas identified. Like everybody else, I compliment the rapporteur, Mrs Krehl.
As an Irish Member of the European Parliament and coming from an economy that has been transformed in 15 years from the weakest in the EU to one of the strongest, I wish to acknowledge the huge role that the cohesion and structural funds have played in bringing about the economic miracle known as the ‘Celtic Tiger’. The EUR 308 billion for 2007-2013 will go largely to the new Member States. Ireland’s entitlement is reduced from EUR 3.7 billion for 2000-2006 to EUR 901 million, which is a barometer of our economic success. I have no problem with that.
However, I should like to ask my colleagues in the new Member States not to give their national governments the power to decide at central government level how and where the money is to be spent. They need regional structures with real development power, real decision-making powers for the regions.
I speak from experience. I represent a constituency in Ireland known as the BMW region. It is one of the poorest regions, bordering the Atlantic Ocean and largely mountainous. It is still the only region in Ireland that retains Objective 1 status, though that, through national economic performance, ceases on 31 December 2006. Over the years, funds that flowed from the cohesion and structural funds and were intended for regions such as mine were channelled to Dublin, the east and the south of the country and co-financed national development plans. I do not exaggerate. EUR 680 million of co-financed monies intended for the BMW region have gone to Dublin, the east and the south. Why? Because in Ireland there is no regional authority with real decision-making powers. Everything is decided in Dublin at central government level.
Now is the time for the new Member States to ensure that they have real regional authorities – not just paper tigers – otherwise they may find that the Irish experience will be their experience tomorrow. Commissioner Hübner reiterated that this evening. I think it should happen, it must happen, and the Commission has a role here as well in insisting that it does happen."@en1
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