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Single Payment Scheme Payments

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 6 May 2014

Tuesday, 6 May 2014

Questions (341)

Dan Neville

Question:

341. Deputy Dan Neville asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if full complement of single farm payments will issue in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Limerick. [20007/14]

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Written answers

Under the Terms and Conditions of the Single Payment Scheme, an applicant, as well as meeting the Scheme criteria, is required to comply with EU regulatory requirements relating to Cross Compliance. A report detailing the findings of an inspection by Limerick County Council on 16 January 2013 was received by my Department on 4 April 2013. This report detailed breaches of cross compliance requirements in relation to Nitrates Regulations and the requirement to maintain lands in Good Agriculture and Environmental Condition.

The breaches under the Nitrates Regulations were reported in relation to the maintenance of records, the inadequate collection of soiled water, livestock manure and organic fertiliser and the stockpiling of farmyard manure on land in breach of regulations governing buffer zones. The breaches were deemed serious and intentional resulting in a 60% penalty being determined.

The inspection report also detailed a breach relating to the requirement to maintain lands in Good Agricultural and Environmental Condition due to evidence of poaching of lands. This resulted in a 5% penalty being determined. However as a similar breach had been recorded at an inspection in 2012 rules regarding repetition were applied which resulted in a 15% penalty being recorded.

Overall, these breaches resulted in a 75% penalty being applied against the 2013 Single Payment Scheme. The person named was notified of this decision on 16 May 2013. The person named appealed this decision and was notified of the outcome of the review, which was to uphold the original decision, on 6 February 2014. The person named has appealed this outcome to the independent Agriculture Appeals Office and that office will be in contact with the person named in due course to arrange an oral hearing.

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