Vol. 467 No. 7
345 Mr. Cowen asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry the total forage area declared by participants in the special beef premium and the EU suckler cow schemes in 1995; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13927/96]
346 Mr. Cowen asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry if he will provide in tabular from the forage area declared by special beef premium applicants and EU suckler cow applicants in the amounts of payment ranging from £0 to £1,000, £2,000 to £3,000, £3,000 to £4,000, £4,000 to £5,000, £5,000 to £6,000, £6,000 to £7,000, £7,000 to £8,000, £8,000 to £9,000, £9,000 to £10,000, £10,000 to £11,000, £11,000 to £12,000, £12,000 to £13,000, £13,000 to £14,000, £14,000 to £15,000, £15,000 to £16,000, £16,000 to £17,000, £17,000 to £18,000, £18,000 to £19,000, £19,000 to £20,000, £20,000 to £21,000, £21,000 to £22,000, £22,000 to £23,000, £23,000 to £24,000, £24,000 to £25,000, £25,000, to £26,000, £26,000 to £27,000, £27,000 to £28,000, £28,000 to £29,000, and £29,000 to £30,000,; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13928/96]
347 Mr. Cowen asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry the number of applicants for special beef premium and EU suckler cow schemes who had inadequate forage area for eligibility for basic premia and had inadequate forage area for extensification grants; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13929/96]
I propose taking Questions Nos. 345, 346 and 347 together.
In the time available since these questions were put it has not proved possible to obtain the information requested. My Department is obtaining the information requested in Questions Nos. 345 and 347, however, and will forward that information to the Deputy when obtained. The information requested in Questions No. 346 is not available in the format requested by the Deputy.
348 Mr. Cowen asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry the total forage area declared by farmers applying for cattle headage and beef cow grants in the more severely handicapped areas in 1995; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13930/96]
349 Mr. Cowen asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry the total forage area declared by farmers applying for beef cow headage in the less severely handicapped areas; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13931/96]
350 Mr. Cowen asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry the number of farmers who had their headage payment claim reduced due to insufficient forage areas; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13932/96]
I propose taking Questions Nos. 348, 349 and 350 together.
Present statistics indicate that (a) the total forage area declared by farmers applying for cattle headage and beef cow grants in the more severely handicapped areas in 1995 was 2,161,556 hectares; (b) the total forage area declared by farmers applying for beef cow headage in the less severely handicapped areas in 1995 was 487,795 hectares and (c) 15,978 cattle headage and beef cow applicants, 343 sheep headage applicants and 459 equine headage applicants had their headage payment claims reduced in 1995 due to insufficient forage area.
It has been a feature of the disadvantaged area schemes since their inception that considerable numbers of applicants have had payments restricted due to the application of forage area limits.
