At this juncture, the budget for the Targeted Agriculture Modernisation scheme (TAMS) is already fully committed to current eligible items included in the scheme under our Rural Development programme. Support for land drainage is not therefore included in programme.
It must also be recognised that any such measure would require full compliance with environmental requirements including the need for a full national Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) and Appropriate Assessments for any potentially affected Natura Areas. Such requirements in any potential measure should not be considered insignificant as would the challenge of securing European Commission approval.