Jim Higgins
Question:54 Mr. Higgins (Mayo) asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development if he will extend headage and other livestock grants to deer farmers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9518/00]
Written Answers. - Grant Payments.
An outcome of the Agenda 2000 negotiations is that headage payments in the disadvantaged areas are being decoupled from production and are moving from a payment per animal basis to a payment per hectare basis. Under transitional arrangements the headage scheme as it has operated up to now will continue to apply this year. I have no proposals to introduce compensatory allowances for deer farmers under the new arrangements for payment of headage in the years 2000 to 2006. No other livestock grants are available on deer.
John Ellis
Question:55 Mr. Ellis asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development his views on the suggestion in the recent agri-food report to discontinue headage payments to farmers over 65 and replace these with another form of payment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9723/00]
I will undertake a round of consultations with the representative organisations on the proposals in the Agri Food 2010 report. It would be inappropriate for me to take a definitive position on any specific proposal in the report until these consultations are completed, which should not take longer than three months.