Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 6 November 2012
103. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his policy in relation to the less severely handicapped areas under the proposed new common agricultural policy; if he will confirm that if these areas were to be reduced it would mean a loss of finance to Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48248/12]
View answerThe future system of payments to farmers in disadvantaged areas forms part of the wider negotiations on the reform of the common agricultural policy. Under the Commission’s proposal, Less Favoured Areas – known as Disadvantaged Areas in Ireland – will become known as Areas facing natural or specific constraints, or ANCs. Designation of the ANC areas is proposed to be determined by 8 soil and climatic criteria. These are grouped under four headings of climate, climate and soil together, soil and terrain. They include low temperature, dryness, excess soil moisture, limited soil drainage, unfavourable texture and stoniness, shallow rooting depth, poor chemical properties and slope.
This is a very important issue for Ireland as the total area designated as disadvantaged is almost 75% of Ireland’s total land area. From an economic perspective the Less Favoured Areas Scheme is particularly significant, contributing to the support of in excess of 100,000 Irish farm families, whose ability to farm is restricted by the physical environment, in particular, the impact of the prevailing wet cold climatic conditions in Ireland.
At EU level, in overall terms, I consider that the Commission’s proposals of using bio-physical criteria as laudable, but I believe there is a need to broaden the scope of the proposed criteria and to give Member States more flexibility in designating areas. My Department has conducted extensive analysis of the impact of using the eight criteria. The results show that whilst there is not a major shift in the total area designated in Ireland there is a considerable change within the totality - areas not previously designated now included with other designated area excluded, and in some cases the designation is very difficult to justify. I can assure the Deputy, however, that I am seeking additional flexibility in the designation process and in the timeline for implementation of any changes to ensure that there are no abrupt or significant alterations to the conditions of the current scheme.
Of course the level of these payments in Ireland will also be informed by the decisions taken on the next multi-annual financial framework for the EU budget. The funding for the second pillar of the CAP, which includes provision for these payments, falls to be decided by Heads of State and Government as part of the MFF negotiations. A special meeting of the European Council is scheduled for 22 and 23 November for this purpose.
