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Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 20 Mar 2002

Vol. 550 No. 4

Written Answers. - Animal Disease Compensation.

Seymour Crawford

Question:

261 Mr. Crawford asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development the payment situation regarding the 45 sheep farmers who were depopulated under the Government scrapie control programme; the number of these producers who were paid within 14 days in line with the agreement with his Department and the producers; the reasons his Department breached their agreement on payment within 14 days with the producers concerned; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9263/02]

To date a total of 53 scrapie infected sheep flocks have been depopulated, including three within the past week. The position at present is that payments have issued in respect of 48 of these cases. The remainder of the claims are being processed and payments will issue shortly. Some of these flocks were depopulated immediately prior to the Christmas holiday period.

While my Department had indicated that as a general rule payment would be made to flockowners within 14 working days of the slaughter of flocks, it had also pointed out that in cases where it was not possible to have an order for payment with the Department's accounts branch by 7 December there would be a delay until after the Christmas period. Such delays arose because of additional work required in our accounts branch because of the euro changeover.

It is also the case that the volume and complexity of paperwork associated with each case and with a compensation package which is entirely new, and the fact that all flocks with cases confirmed since 1 January 1999 were slaughtered in the same short period added difficulties to the processing of claims. Now that the initial backlog of claims is cleared, my Department will do its utmost to ensure more prompt payment in the case of future depopulated flocks.

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