21 June 2000

MINISTERS PROVIDE BOOST FOR CROSS-BORDER CO-OPERATION

The Northern Ireland Minister for Higher and Further Education, Training and Employment, Dr Sean Farren, and the Republic's Minister of State for Labour Affairs, Tom Kitt, have provided a further boost to cross-border co-operation by jointly announcing a significant package of financial support for the EURES (European Employment Services) Cross-border Partnership.

The announcement follows a meeting of the two Ministers in Dublin, at which they agreed that their Departments will provide an extra £60,000 each to develop the Partnership.

Dr Farren and Mr Kitt said: "EURES has shown just what can be achieved by working in partnership. At a practical level it has enabled people on both sides of the border to get jobs they might otherwise have missed, with a resultant benefit not just to them as individuals, but to the communities in which they live and work.

"But, just as important as the undoubted economic benefits, the Partnership is playing its part in helping to create an inclusive society by allowing people to learn with and from one another."

The funding package announced by the two Ministers will, among other things, enable the Partnership to employ additional staff members which in turn should allow it to place even more people in jobs.

Both Ministers added: "While several thousand people commute to work across the border each day a number of barriers to doing so still remain. These include lack of information on the practicalities of cross-border working, for example tax rates and social security entitlements for cross-border workers. The Partnership is important in that it is seeking to address such information gaps."

NOTES TO EDITORS:

The EURES cross-border Partnership is one of a network of 19 operating in border regions throughout Europe. Funding comes mainly from the European Commission. The main aim of the Partnership is to facilitate cross-border working by identifying obstacles facing those interested in travelling to a job (or training) across the border. It also seeks to help employers recruit staff who live on the other side of the border. The region covered by the Partnership is Northern Ireland and the border counties of the Republic (Louth, Cavan, Monaghan, Donegal, Sligo and Leitrim).

A number of initiatives have been taken to date. These include:

• establishing a network of advisers within the Partner Organisations specifically trained to provide an Information, Advice and Placement Service on cross-border working and recruitment;
• introducing arrangements for the exchange of job vacancies across the border between FAS and T&EA offices;
• arranging conferences and seminars on cross-border labour mobility issues.

There are 6 organisations from both sides of the border, involved in the Partnership representing the Public Employment Services (FAS and T&EA), Employer Groups and Trade Unions.