Vol. 542 No. 5
130 Mr. McGahon asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development if agreement has been made to reimburse the sheep farmers in the Cooley area who were underpaid at the early stages of foot and mouth in order to treat everyone on an equal basis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24863/01]
The outbreak of foot and mouth disease at Proleek on the Cooley Peninsula made it necessary to cull susceptible animals on the peninsula in order to prevent the disease spreading to livestock in other areas of County Louth and farther afield.
Some 280 flocks and herds were depopulated on the Cooley Peninsula in the course of the cull. In so far as sheep were concerned, valuations were carried out to fix a market value on each flock as the basis for compensation as provided by law. Initial valuations tended to conform with "ready reckoners" used by the Department's own valuers. As matters progressed it became necessary for outside valuers to be drawn in to speed up the whole process. Their valuations were seen by local flockowners as more generous than valuations carried out by Department personnel. Roughly speaking, those whose animals were taken in the latter part of the exercise tended to be satisfied, while flockowners whose animals were valued and taken at an earlier stage felt aggrieved.
Following earlier exchanges with IFA at local level, it was agreed that the cases of flockowners who fell into this category would be reviewed. This led to a review of 182 cases. This exercise resulted in supplementary payments being made in 148 or 81% of these cases. Individual supplementary payments ranged from £80 to £22,535 and totalled £415, 000. This was additional to payments of some £3.4 million already made to the flockowners in question on foot of the initial valuations.
A meeting in late September with officials of my Department, an IFA delegation, which included a number of local flockowners, put forward certain alternative propositions for consideration. These are at present under consideration.
