An application under 2010 Single Payment Scheme/Disadvantaged Areas Scheme was received from the person named on 5 May 2010. The 75% advance payment on the Disadvantaged Areas Scheme, which issued on 21 September 2010 and the 50% advance on the Single Payment Scheme, which issued on 18 October 2010, were both on the basis of the land cleared at that stage, as a number of parcels declared required digitising. While balancing payments are scheduled to commence issuing as and from 1 December, such payments would, in normal circumstances, be confined to those whose applications are fully processed, specifically, where all digitising is finalised.
However, following recent consultation with the EU Commission, agreement was reached whereby, in addition to issuing balancing payments to those farmers whose applications are fully processed and whose maps are fully digitised, payments will also issue to those farmers where some or all of their maps are still to be digitised, with the payment being calculated on the basis of the digitised land confirmed eligible. I am pleased to say that, because of this change, many farmers, including the person named, whose balancing payments would otherwise have been delayed until their digitising is complete, will now receive an interim balancing payment. The position regarding the balancing payments is, therefore, as follows:
From 1 December all applicants will be paid their full balancing payments, where the case is fully processed and clear;
Applicants, whose applications are fully clear, where the only outstanding issue is a non-digitised map(s), will be paid their balancing payment on the clear, digitised area (excluding their non-digitised land), subject to a maximum of 80% of the value of their total Single Payment; these farmers will receive the final instalment of their balancing payment when their maps are re-digitised and their applications are fully clear.
Payments due under the Disadvantaged Areas Scheme will also issue on completion of the outstanding digitising.