The Interreg 5A Ireland-Northern Ireland-Scotland programme – now entering its fourth generation – will cover the Border Region (including Louth) as before, all of Northern Ireland (now including Greater Belfast) and parts of Western Scotland. Note that under special circumstances up to 20 per cent of the programme’s allocated budget can be spent in areas outside this, provided that a tangible and measurable benefit to the programme’s designated eligible area can be demonstrated.

The €283 million programme will provide ERDF to the value of €225.9 million (representing up to 85 per cent of eligible costs) for project activities to be structured according to four priority areas of Research & Innovation; Environment; Sustainable Transport, and Health.For further details visit www.seupb.eu

Meanwhile, the new Interreg 5A Ireland-Wales programme also gained the Commission’s seal of approval to get underway. This €100m fund – with ERDF providing €74.4m for projects (50% increase on the 2007-2013 programme) – will focus on collaboration across the maritime border to link research organisations with business; to support coastal communities efforts in tackling the effects of climate change; and shared approaches to managing natural and cultural heritage in an environmentally friendly way, with a particular focus on tourism.

Formally, the three priority axes, and their ERDF allocations, are as follows:

• 1) Cross-Border Innovation (€31.7m)
• 2) Adaption of the Irish Sea and Coastal Communities to Climate Change (€27.7m)
• 3) Cultural and Natural Resources and Heritage (€15m)

On the Irish side, the new programme area covers over three million of the national population having been expanded to incorporate Tipperary, Cork City and County and Kerry among its eligible areas for the first time.

For further details visit www.irelandwales.ie