Written Answers Nos. 81-88
81. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation further to Parliamentary Question No. 211 of 23 September 2014 his further views on problems being faced by a company (details supplied) in Dublin 13; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45684/14]
View answerIn my response of the 23rd of September 2014 to the Deputy, I pointed out that if he wishes to make available information that suggests circumstances of possible wrongful behaviour relating to companies or company directors he should contact the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement. As the Director of Corporate Enforcement is a statutory independent officer it is not possible for me to intervene in any action or decision taken by the Director in relation to his statutory functions.
In relation to possible tax evasion, I would ask the Deputy, or any other person who has information on such matters, to bring such information to the attention of the Revenue Commissioners for whatever action they consider appropriate.
With regard to grant aid for woodworking businesses, the Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) are the first-stop-shop front line service in terms of advice, direction, training and, in certain circumstances, grant support for anyone who wishes to start or expand a business. Contact details for the LEOs are available at www.localenterprise.ie.
The LEOs themselves provide a range of financial and non-financial supports to help enterprises at start-up or during business expansion phases. It should be noted that the LEOs generally only grant assist enterprises in the manufacturing or internationally traded services sector, which over time can develop into strong export entities and graduate to the Enterprise Ireland portfolio. However, there are other potential supports available and the LEO staff can advise appropriately.
Any business can use the LEOs as a gateway to accessing finance from Micro Finance Ireland (MFI), which offers support in the form of loans of up to €25,000 to start-up, newly established or growing microenterprises employing less than 10 people with viable business propositions that do not meet the conventional risk criteria applied by the banks. The Fund available to MFI has a significant entrepreneurship focus and is open to anyone with a viable business proposal. Applications for the Microfinance Fund should be channelled through the local LEO.
Businesses can also access the new online search tool for SME business supports that was launched last May. The Supporting SMEs Online Tool is a cross-governmental initiative to help Irish start-ups and small businesses navigate the range of Government business supports for which they could be eligible.
The Supporting SMEs Online Tool is available at: www.localenterprise.ie/smeonlinetool.
82. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo will receive their single farm payment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45568/14]
View answerThe person named submitted a 2014 Single Farm Payment/Disadvantaged Areas’ scheme application on 27 March 2014. EU Regulations governing the administration of these schemes require that full and comprehensive administrative checks, including in some cases Remote Sensing (i.e. satellite) inspections, be completed before any payments issue.
The EU Regulations also require that where it is not possible to make an accurate determination on the eligibility of a parcel or parcels of land by means of an assessment of the available satellite imagery, a field inspection must be undertaken to verify the eligibility of the land.
The application of the person named was selected for a Remote Sensing inspection. Initial processing of this inspection identified a requirement to verify the eligibility of land declared by means of a field inspection.
On completion of this inspection the results will be finalised with the intention of issuing any payment due as soon as possible. In the event that any queries arise officials in my Department will be in contact with the person named.
83. Deputy Michael Ring asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo will receive payment of their single payment scheme and disadvantaged areas scheme payment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45570/14]
View answerThe person named submitted a 2014 Single Farm Payment/Disadvantaged Areas’ scheme application on 8 April 2014. EU Regulations governing the administration of these schemes require that full and comprehensive administrative checks, including in some cases Remote Sensing (i.e. satellite) inspections, be completed before any payments issue.
The EU Regulations also require that where it is not possible to make an accurate determination on the eligibility of a parcel or parcels of land by means of an assessment of the available satellite imagery, a field inspection must be undertaken to verify the eligibility of the land.
The application of the person named was selected for a Remote Sensing inspection. Initial processing of this inspection identified a requirement to verify the eligibility of land declared by means of a field inspection.
On completion of this inspection the results will be finalised with the intention of issuing any payment due as soon as possible. In the event that any queries arise officials in my Department will be in contact with the person named.
84. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the position regarding an appeal under the single farm payment scheme in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Donegal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45579/14]
View answerA review of the land parcels declared by the person named under the 2013 Single Payment Scheme revealed that a number of the land parcels declared by the person named contained ineligible features. Following a request for a review from the person named, a visit by a Department official to verify the position was necessary to progress the matter. The person named will be advised of the outcome of this verification visit shortly. If he is not satisfied with the outcome of the review, the applicant can appeal the decision to the independently-chaired LPIS Appeals Committee.
85. Deputy Noel Harrington asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the position regarding a single farm payment in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Cork; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45629/14]
View answerMy Department received a Transfer of Entitlements application on 7th May 2014 to transfer 15.48 Standard National Reserve entitlements from another herd number to the above herd number by way of sale. This was one of the 16,000 Transfer of Entitlements applications received in my Department in 2014. This application has been fully processed and the Single Farm payment due will issue shortly.
86. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will reduce the investment threshold for the farm safety scheme from €2,000 to €1,000 to encourage greater participation in the scheme by smaller farmers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45632/14]
View answerThe Farm Safety Scheme was opened for applications on 22 October 2014 and will remain open until 9th January 2015. Interest in the scheme has been very high with some 2,000 applications received to date. Grant schemes have to operate above a certain threshold to ensure that they actually bring about change and incentivise a level of investment that would not otherwise take place. The minimum investment threshold for the Safety Scheme has already been set quite low and to reduce it further would significantly dilute the impact value of the scheme.
87. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his views on the practice of large beef processors holding and feeding large numbers of cattle until slaughter in an effort to control the market; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that this is prohibited in other jurisdictions, such as the United States; his views on introducing measures to prevent this practice; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45633/14]
View answerThere are over 100,000 farms contributing to cattle output in Ireland and, last year, over 1.5 million head of cattle were sent for slaughter in processing facilities throughout the country. Meat processors make their own arrangements for the procurement of animals for slaughter. These are commercial decisions for individual processors and their supply base will include animals purchased from farmers on the open market, animals reared on a contract basis, and animals supplied from their own holdings. This has been the longstanding practice in Ireland and elsewhere. It is also my understanding that this is also the practice in the US and that processors are not prohibited from rearing animals in that jurisdiction. I do not intend to introduce measures to prevent this practice.
With regard to any suspected manipulation of the market by beef processors, I would ask the Deputy to bring forward any information or evidence he has in this regard to the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission which has been formed through the merger of the National Consumer Agency and the Competition Authority. The Commission is an independent statutory body that inter alia enforces Irish and European competition law in Ireland. It does this by taking action against anti-competitive practices (e.g. price-fixing) and by blocking anti-competitive business mergers. The Commission also has a role in promoting competition in the economy by identifying legislative restrictions on competition, advising the Government on the implications for competition of proposed legislation, and by providing general information about competition issues.
88. Deputy Patrick O'Donovan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine further to the decision of the milk quota appeals tribunal if there is further consideration available in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Wexford; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45658/14]
View answerThe named person was an applicant under my Department’s Hardship Scheme.
Allocations of quota on the grounds of hardship are based on recommendations made by the Milk Quota Appeals Tribunal. This independent body operates in accordance with objective criteria outlined in the explanatory note that accompanied the application form, and the overall volume available for distribution is determined by the projected volume of quota available from the National Reserve.
The person named did not receive any allocation from the Tribunal.
As a result of the assessment process, which took place in October 2014, the entire pool of quota assigned for distribution under this scheme has been utilised. Having regard to the high level of demand on the National Reserve, it will not be possible in the current milk quota year to allocate additional quota for distribution under this scheme.
The person named may apply to his milk processor for additional quota through the second stage of the Temporary Leasing Scheme. Full details of this scheme will be available shortly.
