DECLARATION OF SUPPORT FOR IRISH LOCAL DEVELOPMENT COMPANIES

Keep rural Ireland alive and working and populated. Ireland's heart and soul is in it's rural communities more than anywhere else. These schemes are essential to the sustenance of rural communities as are local services such as post offices and businesses. We will have nothing left if we continue to decimate rural Ireland.

Local development delivers more to communities where there is a degree of ownership in the decision making process by the local community. This intensifies the positive forces within communities to act in the best interest of their local community. If we lookup “rural communities” we get the following “relating to or characteristic of the country or country living” . CLDC is ideally placed to deliver the new rural development programme in the Clare area because of its local structures and goodwill within the community, its innovative and flexible enough to capture and focus the positive forces within the community to deliver a programme that can be uniquely tailored to characteristics of county Clare.

Its a disgrace what they are trying to do

yep

Donegal Local Development Company provide (a) great service. Why change??

My experience with DLDC has been a very positive one - through my club (Convoy Arsenal) - with a RSS + Tús Programme currently ongoing - their help + encouragement has been invaluable

We have to fight to keep DLDC staff to deal with the funding (Leader etc). Without DLDC our project would not be so successful. We will FIGHT.

down with this sort of thing!

A highly professional staff who have wide experiene knowledge, and sympathy in dealing with the community

We as a community need DLDC to be able to continue the good work which is on going in our county. If the funding is taken over by central powers we loose that "thing" which makes DLDC special ie The Local Touch - The Local Knowledge

DLDC has provided a supportive, constructive service that has enabled me to place people in their own community and help them overcome the prejudice of disability.

I support the status quo. Why change a model that is being used in Europe as a flagship model - a model that has worked very well and very efficiently.

DLDC provide vital services to the local communities and hose trying to get off social welfare and become self employed. The loss of DLDC would be a major loss to Donegal and particularly the less well off.

I am in full support of keeping DLDC doing the work of supporting local communities on a continual basis. There is no need of change and we do not want the Government we voted in putting profit before people

County Donegal Railway Restoration has had great support from DLDC in recent years enabling special needs toilets to be provided and substantial additions to museum space through grant-aid to restore vehicles that can be accessed by visitors. This in turn allows us to increase trade back into the community - all due to DLDC. We have also had great benefit for 2 years from Tús scheme

Keep up the great work

Thank you IRD for all you have done to help our community in Rathmore. Keep up the work and let us know what we can do to win this fight for Rural Ireland.

The experience & knowledge of the people who have been running this organisation for years should not be wasted, we should do whatever is necessary to keep DLDC going for the sake of our communities

Boortree Farmtrail & Campsite, Rossnowlagh

The disbandment of DLDC & such partnerships is the most ridiculous idea that has been mooted in recent times. It is a totally retrograde step. People who know what they are doing, years of experience been thrown to the wolves + voluntary Directors dedicated to their community with commitment