Debate contribution: PEACE PLUS Funding

Debate contribution by Mr Stewart Dickson on 13 April 2026.

MLA

Mr Stewart Dickson

Party at the time

Alliance Party

Date

13 April 2026

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Private Members' Business

Heading

PEACE PLUS Funding

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5484029

Read the official Assembly record

Text

I am grateful for the opportunity to speak on the motion. The Alliance Party will support the motion. Having just listened to Mr Brett, I feel that it might be worthwhile to take a step back for a moment and look at what PEACE PLUS does, because sometimes in the Chamber we can get caught up in the debate and lose sight of what we are talking about. There have been 145 projects. We have shared spaces where communities that spent decades apart now share a building, a sports pitch and a park. There are community groups that would never otherwise have had the resources to do what they do. There are cross-border partnerships between people who have found out over the years that working together makes sense and young people in border communities getting opportunities that they would not otherwise have had. That is what we are being asked to support and protect. In my constituency of East Antrim, millions of pounds or euros have been spent and will continue to be spent on and invested in community regeneration, peaceful communities and respect for cultural buildings. The motion notes that there is an agreement in principle for a successor programme beyond 2027. That is welcome; the Alliance Party welcomes it. However, an agreement in principle is not a guarantee of funding. I want to be clear about the specific concern that Members need to understand. In previous Peace programmes, the EU provided a dedicated central allocation — money was ring-fenced in the EU budgets specifically for the programme. That ring-fenced allocation is not in the European Commission's current proposal for the 2028-2034 multi-annual financial framework. The Commission's position as things stand is that Ireland should fund any successor from its wider EU allocation and the British Government's contribution should be as before. I am not totally confident about leaving it to either of those Governments, particularly when you consider the UK Government's betrayal regarding the 64% drop in the local growth fund. We will need a specific guarantee and EU commitment. That is the only way to give our community organisations the certainty that they need to plan for the future. I welcome the work that done by MEPs on the European Parliament Committee on Regional Development to secure central allocations and any successor programme. That work matters and is to be commended, but the multi-year financial framework negotiations will not conclude until the end of 2026 at the earliest, and there is considerable road to be travelled before anything is settled. The time for the Government to make their case is now, not after the budget has been decided and the opportunities for influence have passed. It is disappointing that the Executive Office is not here to hear the debate. The reset of the relationship between the United Kingdom and the European Union represents a genuine opportunity. We have already seen progress on ERASMUS, the emissions trading schemes and the sanitary and phytosanitary arrangements, and I welcome the fact that the Prime Minister has announced new rules to keep in step with the EU that will be introduced through secondary legislation. That demonstrates clearly that, where Governments make decisions, something matters and progress follows. I would like the First Minister and deputy First Minister to hear the message from the Chamber this evening, and I would like them to make decisions about PEACE PLUS and make the case for a ring-fenced central allocation directly at the highest level and not to leave it to officials or correspondence, as is often their wont. PEACE PLUS exists because of the Good Friday Agreement. The Special EU Programmes Body that manages it is one of the cross-border bodies established under the agreement. This is not a standard EU regional development fund that is to be quietly absorbed into a national allocation; it is something unique to this place. It builds on a unique set of circumstances, and it deserves to be treated responsibly.

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

Assessment

Not flagged

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 15:21 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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