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<p>Since 2007, the 2007-13 round of the European Regional Development Fund has seen
1,535 projects across England approved, with £2.7 billion of funds committed.</p><p>Of
these, 860 bids were approved since May 2010; a further 395 were either withdrawn
by applicants or rejected for not meeting the (complex) eligibility criteria established
at the start of the programme under the last Administration. A list of projects is
given in the attached table.</p><p>All spending of taxpayers’ money must ensure value
for money: and money should not be spent on poor quality projects just for the sake
of it. Spending must also comply with complex and bureaucratic EU rules, or else risk
“financial corrections” down the line. We continue to have concerns over the bureaucratic
and time consuming nature of the processes involved in the programme, as a consequence
of rules imposed by the European Commission.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p>
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