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Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 27 Mar 1996

Vol. 463 No. 4

Written Answers. - Farmers' Direct Income Payments.

Donal Moynihan

Ceist:

148 Mr. Moynihan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry the meaning of his recent statement, that the cheque in the post has peaked. [6724/96]

In my speech at the launch of the Teagasc advisory programme I referred to the amount of direct income payments to farmers which had either been introduced or increased as part of the arrangements which accompanied the reform of the CAP in 1992.

Between 1992 and 1995 the value of gross agricultural product i.e. the value of farm produce sold from farms, increased by 7 per cent — from £3,364.1 million in 1992 to £3,592.3 million in 1995. During the same period the level of direct income payments rose from £405.3 million in 1992 to £747 million in 1995 — an increase of 84 per cent. The result was that direct income payments to farmers went from being 22 per cent of aggregate farm income in 1992 to 35.5 per cent in 1995. It can be seen, therefore, that much of the increase in agricultural income since 1992 has resulted from increased direct income payments. Further increases in payments on this scale are not in prospect and, therefore, farm income increases in future will be more reliant than heretofore on income generated on-farm through increased efficiency. Teagasc's advisory and training strategies are aimed at ensuring that farmers achieve this objective.

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