14 Apr 2015, 17:33
Farm organisations and farm consultants raise concerns around marginal land payments
14 April 2015
The Oireachtas Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine has this afternoon called for talks between farm organisations, farm consultants and officials from the relevant Government Departments to ensure greater clarity on the eligibility of marginal land.
Representatives from Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA), the Agricultural Consultants Association (ACA); Irish Natura and Hill Farmers Association and Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers’ Association (ICSA) told the Committee of the precarious financial position farm families nationwide are facing, with the applications due in early May.
Chairman of the Committee Andrew Doyle TD says: “This was a timely meeting in which there was broad agreement among Committee Members and witnesses alike that the confusion around eligibility guidelines in this crucial first year of a new Common Agricultural Policy was entirely unacceptable. There were calls for more joined up thinking between the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, and the National Parks and Wildlife Service at the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.
“Farming is not an exact science and the Committee was told that the eligibility of land for EU payments was a highly subjective process. For instance, farm advisors, Department inspectors and EU auditors often differ in how they determine the levels of farm activity on marginal land. We therefore take on board calls that a margin for tolerance must be built into the process, particularly considering the adverse impact of retrospective penalties on farmers. The Committee fully agrees on the necessity for clear guidelines for farmers and planners regarding eligibility and, with this in mind, is calling for a working group comprising all stakeholders to be established.
“Fundamentally, hundreds of millions of euros of European taxpayers’ money has been earmarked for Ireland annually and it would run completely against the spirit of the EU’s environmental programmes should farmers be forced to abandon their land as a result of this uncertainty. Acknowledging the time constraints in what is a crucial year for CAP payment recipients, the Committee sees that a broad consensus on workable guidelines is still achievable in the next seven weeks. This meeting was a valuable first step in this process, in allowing key stakeholders place their perspectives and concerns on the public record, with a view to generating a momentum that will deliver practical solutions for farmers on marginal land.”
Media enquiries to:
Paul Hand,
Communications Unit,
Houses of the Oireachtas,
Leinster House,
Dublin 2
P: +3531 618 4484
M: +353 87 694 9926
paul.hand@oireachtas.ie
Committee Membership:
Chairman: Andrew Doyle, (Fine Gael)
Deputies: Tom Barry (Fine Gael); Pat Deering (Fine Gael); Martin Ferris (Sinn Féin); Martin Heydon (Fine Gael); Michael McNamara (Labour); Éamon Ó Cuív (Fianna Fáil); Willie Penrose (Labour Party); Thomas Pringle (Independent)
Senators: Michael Comiskey, Denis Landy, Paschal Mooney, Mary Ann O’Brien, Brian Ó Domhnaill, Pat O’Neill