Vol. 551 No. 2
184 Mr. Deenihan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development if his Department will review the farm installation aid scheme in relation to the transfer date of the farm to the application for the grant; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9775/02]
To qualify for aid under the installation aid scheme, IAS, the initial application must include confirmation that the associated setting up costs – for example, stamp duty, legal and accountancy fees, etc., remain to be discharged by the young farmer at the time of application. This was a specific requirement of the EU Commission when it approved the scheme.
Applicants are, therefore, obliged to make their initial application within four months of taking over the farm, to ensure that the Department has been notified of their intention to seek installation aid before the related set up costs have been discharged. The four month period is therefore in place as a protection for applicants. The operation of the scheme is currently being reviewed with a view to further simplification. This four month time period for the initial application will be considered in that context.
