Vol. 433 No. 1
211 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry the amount of money that has been received from farmers completing the area aid forms; and if the membership of Teagasc has increased since the introduction of the area aid forms.
My Department, of course, did not receive any money from farmers completing the area aid forms. While the amount received by Teagasc is a matter for that body itself, I understand that it is of the order of £500,000. There were, of course, substantial costs associated with the delivery of the service. I understand that farmer membership of the Teagasc advisory services has increased by about 5,000 since the introduction of the area aid forms.
