Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 8 Apr 1993

Vol. 429 No. 5

Adjournment Debate. - Departmental Decentralisation.

Mr. Deenihan

Under the plan proposed by the Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry, local offices will have responsibility only for suckler cow, sheep premia, headage payments and area aid payments. All premia relating to male beef cattle will be handled in a new office to be constructed in Portlaoise. The centralisation of beef premia is expected to be in place by June this year. It is understood that a temporary building will be leased in Dublin for one to two years while the new facility is being built in Portlaoise. The Department has indicated that the move is aimed at improving the service to farmers and at speeding up payments. Indeed, a spokesman for the Department said that the move involves the introduction of a high-tech computerised system aimed at reducing errors. However, local staff point out that past delays were due to lack of staff at local level.

The IFA livestock chairman, Mr. Richard Booth, recently criticised the plan and said that the Department should bring their services closer to the farmer rather than centralise, particularly in the light of the extra complications associated with the plethora of form filling under the Common Agricultural Policy reform. In The Kerryman this week the local IFA President said that this proposal, if implemented, will adversely affect up to 10,000 farmers throughout Kerry who previously processed their applications through the Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry office in Tralee. This move will cause great inconvenience to farmers throughout rural Ireland.

Those of us who have represented people with problems relating to beef premia are aware that the local Departmental staff help farmers complete application forms and so on. If a problem arises farmers have only to go into their local Department office. In Kerry that office is in Tralee. If the process is centralised in Portlaoise will farmers be expected to telephone with every query and wait for an answer, thus adding greatly to their telephone expenses? It is not unusual to be kept waiting for five to ten minutes while someone checks a file. For instance, how will the Portlaoise office correlate files relating to TB with headage payment files for the purpose of sorting out invalid tag ownership, ages of animals etc?

It is worth pointing out also that under the area aid scheme farmers will want to know exactly how many livestock units they have applied for before completing suckler cow forms. In some cases it may benefit the farmer to omit some sucklers to get the full benefit of the area aid. However, under the new system they will not know what is happening. Herd owners applying to join the scheme for the first time will find it very difficult also.

I am in favour of decentralisation. I do not begrudge Portlaoise an office under the Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry. It is good that offices are being moved out of Dublin but what is proposed in this instance is a reversal of the whole decentralisation policy in the sense that it is taking services and power away from local offices, which is contrary to this Government's philosophy. In view of the hardship and confusion this move would cause for many farmers in rural Ireland I ask that it be reconsidered.

Mr. Hyland

The Common Agricultural Policy reform measures agreed by the Council of Ministers in December last switched the emphasis in the support system for the beef sector away from market support towards direct payments to farmers under livestock premium payments. These changes have major implications for the work levels in all the Department's offices. In addition significant new work will arise from the implementation of the Single Market, particularly in the veterinary area. My Department also has plans for the introduction of a major upgrading of its information technology area, including the introduction of a computerised animal movement permit system.

In recognition of the very significant increase in the workload caused by all of these measures and the financial importance of these schemes to the farming community the Government allocated an additional £4.4 million in the budget to assist the Department in implementing these schemes and to undertake work in other areas.

The principal changes under the Common Agricultural Policy reform involve substantial increases in rates and numbers of payments under the special beef premium and suckler cow premium, a new deseasonalisation slaughter premium, a new extensification premium and the introduction of quotas at national and/or individual farmer levels.

In relation to veterinary controls, which were formerly operated in a cost effective way at the ports, the removal of frontier controls in the Single Market will necessitate the carrying out of these controls at the points of origin for exports and the points of distribution for imports. To ensure that the new system is effective, an EC Community-wide standard system of registration of holdings and identification of farm animals must be introduced and a computerised system of notification of live animal movements is also required. All this work falls on the local offices.

The indications are that the volume of applications under the various schemes will substantially increase in the years to come. For example, between November 1992 and 31 March 1993 up to 250,000 applications under various schemes were received compared with fewer than 100,000 in the same period the previous year. I expect that the total number of applications under these schemes will more than double in addition to our having to have to deal with area aid applications. Moreover, the task of establishing individual quotas under various schemes will place a substantial burden on my Department which will have to examine thousands of individual files in order to establish the precise entitlements of farmers. In addition, we will have to operate the arable crops scheme and the various headage payments will continue. Overall, I expect that direct payments to farmers will exceed £650 million by 1995.

My Department has reviewed the staffing levels and the overall operations of the local offices and it is clear that the radical Common Agricultural Policy reform measures, with a substantial increase in applications and the Single Market requirements, cannot be accommodated with existing staffing levels and structures. Therefore, it is our intention to increase the numbers of staff in the local offices and in the existing central office in Castlebar. It has also been decided that the payments under the special beef premium and slaughter premium schemes should be centralised in a special unit in Portlaoise as soon as accommodation can be provided. This was decided after careful consideration of all options available and I believe it to be the best option having regard to the staffing and accommodation resources available to the Department.

This centralisation achieves certain economies of scale which would not be available if the resources were dissipated throughout all of the local offices. I should emphasise that, with the exception of these two schemes, all other services will remain in the local offices and indeed the inspections under these schemes will continue to be a function of local field staff. Not only will we retain the existing structures but, as I have indicated, we will be augmenting the numbers attached to many of the offices.

The various issues raised by the Department's proposals are under discussion with the various staff associations concerned. I would appeal for their cooperation in ensuring the continuation of an effective service to the farming community. I would also like to assure the various farming bodies that my Department is committed to providing an effective service and that every facility will be provided to ensure that the new arrangements will operate smoothly. What really matters is that farmers receive their grants as soon as possible after applying. That is the only reason for the proposed rationalisation I have outlined.

The Dáil adjourned at 4.25 p.m. until 2.30 p.m. on Tuesday, 27 April 1993.