James Breen
Question:108 Mr. J. Breen asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he will increase the disease levies due to the severe pressure on farm incomes in view of the difficult year experienced by the farming community. [25983/02]
Written Answers. - Disease Levies.
These increases are necessary and have to be viewed against the background of the current overall budgetary situation, the Exchequer costs of the schemes and the fact that a major part of the expenditure relates to compensation, where the cost of reactors has increased under the on-farm valuation system.
Later today, the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture and Food will deal with the motion requesting Oireachtas approval for draft regulations under the Bovine Diseases (Levies) Acts, 1979 to 1996, the purpose of which is to fix the rates of diseases levies from 1 January 2003 at one cent per gallon of milk delivered for processing and at €5.08 per animal slaughtered or exported live. This is in line with the recently published Estimates provision for my Department indicating a doubling of the bovine diseases levies from 2003.