Failure to protect Leader programme at EU level will have ‘significant impact’ on rural Ireland

By Philip Rooney, The Sligo Champion

Failure to protect the Leader programme at EU level will have a significant knock-on effects for rural Ireland according to John Feerick, CEO of Sligo Leader Partnership.

Speaking from Brussells, where a delegation from Ireland’s Local Development Companies attended meetings, Mr Feerick warned, “LEADER works because it puts decisions in the hands of local communities. If this programme is not clearly protected in the next EU budget, rural communities will feel it first, through lost services, stalled local enterprises and fewer opportunities to build resilient local economies.”

During the two‑day visit, the delegation met with Irish and European MEPs, including members of the European Parliament’s Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development, as well as senior officials from DG AGRI and representatives of the Permanent Representation of Ireland to the EU.

Meetings included engagement with MEPs Nina Carberry, Maria Walsh, Seán Kelly and Barry Cowen, alongside discussions with European Commission officials on the future of rural development and cohesion funding.

The delegation issued a stark warning that Irish rural communities could lose access to vital EU funding for jobs, services and social inclusion unless the Leader programme is clearly ring-fenced in the European Union’s next long‑term budget, representatives of Ireland’s Local Development Companies have warned during meetings in Brussels this week. The delegation welcomed the strong level of recognition at EU level for the impact of Leader and the work of Local Development Companies.

Coordinated through the Local Development Companies Network (LDCN), the delegation traveled to Brussels to engage directly with Members of the European Parliament, European Commission officials and key stakeholders as negotiations begin to intensify on the EU’s next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), covering the post‑2027 period.

They cautioned that without explicit ring-fencing in the next EU budget, LEADER, the EU’s flagship rural community‑led local development programme, risks being diluted or absorbed into broader funding streams, undermining its unique bottom‑up approach and its proven impact in rural areas.

Leader has played a central role in supporting rural innovation, social inclusion, and enterprise development across Ireland for more than three decades. Delivered locally through Ireland’s network of Local Action Groups and Local Development Companies, the programme is internationally recognised as a best‑practice model for community‑led rural development.

In Ireland alone, since 2014, Leader supported 6,858 projects nationally, with investment of over €286 million, particularly targeting areas where access to mainstream public services and private investment is limited.

While Leader is delivered at local level, its outcomes align directly with core EU objectives, including economic cohesion, territorial balance and inclusive growth.

From enterprise hubs and childcare facilities to community amenities, tourism ventures and social enterprises, Leader funded projects play a critical role in ensuring that rural regions are not left behind in Europe’s green and digital transitions.

Local Development Companies will continue engagement with Irish MEPs, EU institutions, and national stakeholders in the coming months as negotiations on the EU’s next budget progress. They are calling on Ireland to play a strong leadership role at EU level to ensure that Leader remains clearly ring-fenced and properly resourced in the next programming period.