33 Mr. L. Burke asked the Minister for Tourism, Sport and Recreation if he has recently met the PLANET organisation regarding the future of the area based partnership programmes. [24251/99]

As I mentioned earlier, on 3 December next, I will meet PLANET, the representative body of the area-based partnership companies to discuss the future of area based partnership programmes. The present programmes under the operational programme for local urban and rural development have made significant achievements in combating disadvantage and it is the Government's intention that the new National Development Plan will build further on these successes.

Under the new national development plan, £420 million has been provided to continue and augment the valuable work and activities currently carried out by the area-based partnership companies and community groups, the local drug task forces, and the young people's facilities and services fund.

This provision represents a 50 per cent increase over the levels of expenditure available to existing programmes in these fields. This £420 million is the largest single allocation from the billion pounds earmarked for expenditure under the regional operational programmes in the special sub-programmes for social inclusion.