Ivan Yates
Ceist:219 Mr. Yates asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he will outline the minimum base area that is acceptable for inclusion in the disadvantaged areas appeal process.
Vol. 419 No. 5
219 Mr. Yates asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he will outline the minimum base area that is acceptable for inclusion in the disadvantaged areas appeal process.
220 Mr. Yates asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he will set out the timetable for decisions pertaining to the extension of the disadvantaged areas; and if he will make a statement on when final decisions will be made in this regard.
221 Mr. Yates asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if farmers and farming groups who have made submissions for the disadvantaged areas appeal process will have access to the results of the survey in their areas or at any stage before a final decision is made; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
222 Mr. Yates asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if, after the disadvantaged area appeal process, there will still be farms divided between areas that are inside and outside the disadvantaged areas categories; whether such anomalies will be rectified as part of this current process; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
223 Mr. Yates asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if any area, which is appealed under the disadvantaged areas appeals procedure, will be included in the more severely disadvantaged area, as a result of this current procedure, if it satisfies the criteria; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 219 to 223, inclusive, together.
The minimum base area acceptable for inclusion in the disadvantaged areas appeal process is a townland.
Any townland or DED in a non-disadvantaged area must first be admitted by the EC to the Community list of Less Favoured Areas and given disadvantaged areas status before re-classification from less to more severely handicapped status can be considered.
It is not possible to rectify anomalies where individual farms are divided between townlands that are inside and outside the disadvantaged categories. The problem of farms which straddle the boundaries has existed since the start of the Disadvantaged Areas Scheme in 1975 and the Department has since then operated a system whereby farmers with split holdings are paid headage on an apportioned basis.