Vol. 519 No. 5
130 Mr. Penrose asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development if he will have the dairy section of his Department examine the correspondence received from a person (details supplied) who is at a clear disadvantage in the way in which the restructuring and leasing scheme is currently reformulated; the steps he will take to ensure that this person is permitted to purchase milk quota; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14338/00]
This year's milk quota restructuring scheme will cater, as a matter of priority, for those producers who had been dependent on temporary leasing over recent years and for those producers who were unable, for reasons outside their control, to renew existing land leases. I decided to structure this year's scheme in this way following consultation with organisations involved in the industry and taking account in particular of the views of the milk quota review group.
It was necessary, when deciding on the priorities for this year, to make particular provision for those producers who would be most directly affected by the change to the new regime and whose position, in the absence of priority access to quota, could be worse than last year.
