ABSTRACT
The Regulations governing the operation of the European Union’s Structural Funds (Commission of the European Communities, 1996) were drafted with the intention of providing a common basis for the operation and management of regional programmes throughout the fifteen member states. In theory, this common approach should provide a uniform basis for the implementation of the Structural Funds and should facilitate a comparative evaluation of the performance of the programmes. However, in reality, within the context of EU-wide guidance and regulations, fifteen or more approaches and systems of operation have emerged. Even within a single member state it is not unusual for a range of systems to exist. In such circumstances the participants involved in the processes of developing and managing programmes may be required to engage in various styles of partnership behaviour and may be required to perform a variety of different roles depending upon which region they are operating in.
