Libertas, the Carribean Swimming Pool and the Flat Ski Slope

[ibis]

Has anyone uncovered the 'Carribean' dimension to the swimming pool?

Libertas are simply repeating a Telegraph story:

The European Union has spent almost £20 million of taxpayers' money building swimming pools in the Caribbean.

It was revealed at the weekend that development funds destined for poorer regions have been used to "improve, renovate or build" pools in Guadeloupe.

The French overseas territory, which despite its location is technically part of the European Union, enjoys crystal-clear seas for most of the year.

It is also considered relatively affluent compared with its neighbours such as Cuba or the Dominican Republic.

In fact, the island of Guadeloupe has received €19.76m from the EU to diversify its tourism base:

According to the information available to the Commission, the program of Guadeloupe, for the programming period 2000-2006, has provided an allocation of public expenditure (from Community and national public share) of 19.67 million euros for strengthening capacity in the field of tourism.

The money has included spending on swimming pools. So, again, this is standard "diversifying income in rural areas" spending, of the type we take advantage of ourselves I'm not sure what the relevance of Cuba and the Dominican Republic is - they're not in the EU.

[CookieMonster]

the EU has spend €22m on swimming pools in the Carribean

In a written reply to a parliamentary question in Brussels, Danuta Hubner, the Commissioner for Regional Policy, said that the investment was intended to boost Guadeloupe's "develop a charming hotel industry" and promote Guadeloupe's "potential and culture".
The EU development fund, to which Britain contributes, is supposed to help the EU's more backward regions catch up.
Nils Lungren, a Swedish MEP, tabled the question in the European Parliament in Brussels after learning of the money when it was reported by Guadeloupe's government.
He wrote in his written question: "Does the Commission consider it is reasonable for taxpayers' money to be used for investment in private business activities?"

Open Europe - independent think tank calling for radical reform of the EU

€100k on a flat ski slope in Denmark.

The European Union allocated 100,000 euros (136,000 dollars) to a Danish businessman to build a ski slope on an island where snow rarely falls and no hill rises much above 100 metres (330 feet), a Danish newspaper reported Monday."I never thought they (the EU experts) were going to back something so crazy," Ole Harild told the tabloid Ekstra Bladet.

EU funds built ski run on flat snow-free Danish island — EUbusiness.com - business, legal and economic news and information from the European Union

[marmurr1916]

It's not a flat ski-slope. The island is flat.

There's an artificial ski-slope in Co. Wicklow and yet there are no ski resorts in Ireland.

There's nothing wrong with having artificial ski-slopes in countries where skiing and/or snowboarding isn't possible.

People who take snow-holidays abroad want to practice their skiing and/or snowboarding before they go.

And what's wrong with investing money to develop Guadeloupe's tourist industry?

Guadeloupe is part of the EU:

The European Union includes a number of territories which although geographically distant are close in terms of the exercise of rights and obligations, and very important in terms of territorial integrity.

They are the four French Overseas Departments - Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Martinique and Réunion -, the Spanish Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands and the Portuguese Autonomous Regions of the Azores and Madeira.

Unlike the Overseas Countries and Territories, these regions are an inherent part of the European Union and, by the terms of the Treaty of Amsterdam, their distinctive characteristics qualify them for special treatment in various sectors.

These "most remote regions" enable the European Union to have a very widely spread maritime territory, but also an even more diverse economy, by supplying, for example, agricultural produce such as rum, cane sugar, bananas and other exotic fruits and vegetables to meet a demand among European consumers. These most remote regions are also rich in opportunities that can help foster relations between neighbouring countries and Europe, while also offering attractive sites for certain research and high technology activities, such as the Astrophysics Institute in the Canary Islands, the European Space Agency in French Guiana and the Department of Oceanography and Fishing at the University of the Azores.

However, their insularity, tropical climate, often volcanic rock and mountainous terrain, distance from mainland Europe and proximity to less developed third countries are all obstacles to the development of these regions. Also, despite a relatively high population density – with the exception of French Guiana – they are of relatively modest demographic, economic and territorial importance in relation to the European Union as a whole.

Their difficulty in achieving economies of scale and generating profits from major investments, coupled with low wages and often very high unemployment (especially among young people), make these most remote regions among the poorest in the Union.

...

It was in the late eighties that the idea was first aired of giving the European Community instruments designed specifically for these remote or 'outermost regions'. Major changes were subsequently made to the type of Structural Fund assistance available to them, and they were earmarked for a substantial part of the Community budget. At the same time, the notion of "economic and social cohesion" appeared. This adopted and deepened the concept and field of action of Community regional policy in respect to these remote regions, increasing the resources available and becoming a Community and then Union "objective" rather than a simple "Community policy". A specific article in the Treaty of Amsterdam (article 299§2) provided the legal basis for the concept of "most remote region". In concrete terms, this means that the EU recognises the specificity of the most remote regions and the need to adapt Community policy to allow for their characteristics and circumstances.

The seven most remote regions of the European Union benefited from the Objective 1 programmes cofinanced by the EU Member States during the years 1989-1993 and 1994-1999. In the 2000-2006 period, they were allocated EUR 7.671 billion under the Structural Funds. The programmes developed specifically for these most remote regions - POSEIDOM for the French Overseas Departments (1989), POSEICAN for the Canary Islands (1991) and POSEIMA for the Azores and Madeira (1991) – are the main channels for Community policy in this field. These concentrate their efforts on improving infrastructures, promoting productive sectors which generate jobs and human resources development. There are also many other initiatives which take account of the handicaps of these regions (distance, insularity, reduced competitiveness).

[ibis]

Cookie giving an object lesson in Spin 101 there - when confronted with the truth, repeat initial lie at greater length.

Here's the EP question, and the linked answer.