Debate contribution: EU Funding for the Community and Voluntary Sector

Debate contribution by Mr Eóin Tennyson on 9 September 2024.

MLA

Mr Eóin Tennyson

Party at the time

Alliance Party

Date

9 September 2024

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Private Members' Business

Heading

EU Funding for the Community and Voluntary Sector

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4511860

Read the official Assembly record

Text

There is no doubt that our community and voluntary sector offers invaluable support to our society by helping to tackle economic, social and environmental challenges and often plugging gaps where government provision has fallen short. Yet, be it through the cuts imposed through the Secretary of State's punishment Budget during the absence of this Assembly and Executive, or through their funding being cast aside as collateral in the reckless and ideological pursuit of Brexit, those organisations have been treated shamefully by politicians in recent years. At the end of 2022, I was contacted by Appleby Trust, an organisation in my constituency that offers vital supported employment opportunities for people with disabilities and which had benefited from the European social fund. That work is not just a nice, added extra but is absolutely essential to promote equality and tackle economic inactivity. I felt, frankly, embarrassed that, as this incredible organisation went about its work whilst facing a Brexit-shaped hole in its finances, there was no Assembly and Executive for them to turn to and no clear direction from the UK Government on replacement funding. That was despite a manifesto commitment from the Conservative Government that they would replace EU funding in full — another in the litany of unkept promises left in their wake. Eventually, at the last moment, clarity came in the shape of the Shared Prosperity Fund, and, instead of the like-for-like replacement for ESF and European regional development funding that was promised, the transition proved disastrous, with thousands losing out on vital support, the loss of up to £23 million per year and a power grab, removing the devolved nations' role in administering the funding. That change has arguably been felt most acutely in Northern Ireland, as it is no secret that we were a net beneficiary of EU structural funds. Those allocations were made on the basis of our need to tackle issues around regional imbalance, economic inactivity and underinvestment, and if the UK Government are serious about the so-called levelling up agenda, replacement funding ought to be allocated on the same basis. We know that the UK Government's role in administering funding means that, in some respects, there are now two masters, with risk of duplication of the work between local Departments and those in Whitehall, a lack of understanding of the needs and circumstances of local communities here and a risk that the projects funded do not neatly align with the Executive's strategic priorities. Despite all the barriers that were thrown up, the sector responded with agility, often with creative consortium bids, to preserve as many of the services that they offered as possible. It is unforgivable, therefore, that after all the strain that those organisations have been placed under, they again peer over another cliff edge, with uncertainty on future funding beyond March 2025. Such uncertainty hits the community and voluntary sector harder than other parts of our economy. Staff have to be placed on protected notice and preparation commenced to deliver services differently or, worse, to cease delivering services altogether. Once services and expertise are lost, it is almost impossible to replace them. To lose them would be a false economy, heaping even further cost and pressure onto our public services. After all that they have been through, the least that we can do for those organisations and their service users is to deliver sustainable funding to support the positive change that they bring to our society. It now falls to the UK Government to make good on the promises made by the previous Government, and it is vital that they move swiftly. We need clarity on the short-term future of SPF as a transitional measure to give organisations in receipt of that funding the certainty that they so desperately need. Beyond that, we have a real opportunity to get replacement EU funding right. Together, the Executive can work with the UK Government to co-design a sustainable replacement with the community and voluntary sector, and I hope that the Finance Minister will take those representations to the Treasury and the Department on the Executive's behalf.

682 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not flagged

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 11:01 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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