Vol. 404 No. 4
162 Mr. Farrelly asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the reason a beef subsidy and a beef cow subsidy has not been paid to a person (details supplied) in County Meath; when he expects payment will be made; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
192 Mr. Farrelly asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the reason a suckler cow grant and a special beef premium have not been paid to a person (details supplied) in County Meath; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 162 and 192 together.
The person named is not an applicant under the 1990 suckler cow scheme. His application under the 1990 beef cow and equines headage and the 1990 special beef premium schemes are being processed at present and payments will issue shortly.
163 Mr. Yates asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he will consider bringing forward to a current date the balance of the ewe subsidy payment due to be paid in May of next year, in view of the income difficulties of sheep farmers; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Responsibility for fixing the level of the ewe premium lies with the EC Commission. Under the premium regulations for the sheepmeat sector, advances of the ewe premium may be paid in two half-yearly instalments representing 30 per cent each of the expected premium for the year. The amount of the final premium must be fixed not later than 31 March of the following year.
Because of changes in the ewe premium arrangements in 1990, payments in Ireland were made in respect of applications for the 1989 and the 1990 premiums together. The levels of premiums were: 1989 (full premium) £17.75 per ewe; 1990 — first advance fixed in June 1990 — £6.53 per ewe; and 1990 — second advance fixed in September 1990 — £7.22 per ewe.
The total value of ewe premium payments made to Irish sheep producers last year amounted to £139 million. In addition, headage payments totalling £16 million were paid to producers in severely handicapped areas. These income support measures were of considerable assistance in the face of the difficult market conditions pertaining during the year.
In order to determine the rate of the 1990 premium, the Commission must have available the ewe census figures from each member state to calculate the level of the stabiliser for Great Britain and the rest of the Community. I understand that the Commission will have received the appropriate data from each member state by early March 1991 and that it will take a decision shortly afterwards on the level of the 1990 premium. Following publication in the Official Journal, the payment of the balance of the 1990 premium will be authorised. The payment in Ireland will be made as soon as the procedures outlined above have been completed.
