Over £3m of the money was earmarked for a new livestock genetics database in NI.
ADVERTISEMENT
DAERA is set to hand back over £7m of funding to the Department of Finance after several capital projects ran into an underspend.
Of the £7.1m that will be returned, £3m comes from money that was put up for a proposed livestock genetics programme for NI farmers.
At Stormont’s agriculture committee last week, MLAs were told that the project was held up due to “delays in progressing” the report which sets out the cost and benefits of the proposal.
ADVERTISEMENT
Another £3m of underspend is due to “contractual issues” with waste management grants and £1.1m is because of “procurement delays” with AFBI’s new research sea vessel.
After receiving a written briefing from the department, MLAs on the committee agreed to write to DAERA to seek more clarity on the underspend.
“The prospect of handing back over £7m of funding will come as a surprise to many people. I think it is important that we ask DAERA how they track this and how did they not see this coming?” said committee chair Declan McAleer.
This content is available to digital subscribers and loyalty code users only. Sign in to your account, use the code or subscribe to get unlimited access.
The reader loyalty code gives you full access to the site from when you enter it until the following Wednesday at 9pm. Find your unique code on the back page of Irish Country Living every week.
CODE ACCEPTED
You have full access to the site until next Wednesday at 9pm.
CODE NOT VALID
Please try again or contact support.
DAERA is set to hand back over £7m of funding to the Department of Finance after several capital projects ran into an underspend.
Of the £7.1m that will be returned, £3m comes from money that was put up for a proposed livestock genetics programme for NI farmers.
At Stormont’s agriculture committee last week, MLAs were told that the project was held up due to “delays in progressing” the report which sets out the cost and benefits of the proposal.
Another £3m of underspend is due to “contractual issues” with waste management grants and £1.1m is because of “procurement delays” with AFBI’s new research sea vessel.
After receiving a written briefing from the department, MLAs on the committee agreed to write to DAERA to seek more clarity on the underspend.
“The prospect of handing back over £7m of funding will come as a surprise to many people. I think it is important that we ask DAERA how they track this and how did they not see this coming?” said committee chair Declan McAleer.
If you would like to speak to a member of our team, please call us on 01-4199525.
Link sent to your email address
We have sent an email to your address. Please click on the link in this email to reset your password. If you can't find it in your inbox, please check your spam folder. If you can't find the email, please call us on 01-4199525.
ENTER YOUR LOYALTY CODE:
The reader loyalty code gives you full access to the site from when you enter it until the following Wednesday at 9pm. Find your unique code on the back page of Irish Country Living every week.
SHARING OPTIONS