Vol. 465 No. 6
297 Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry whether there is a penalty attaching to farmers from whom no application for area aid is received in view of the fact that his Department is not complying with its promise to issue acknowledgements in respect of such applications, in order that farmers will be given a second opportunity to submit this form. [10360/96]
298 Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry whether acknowledgements of receipt of area aid applications will issue in 1996 within a fortnight of their receipt in order that farmers can either be reassured that area aid applications were received or, if there is no record of receipt of the application, they can reapply or provide proof of posting of applications. [10365/96]
I will take Questions Nos. 297 and 298 together. The relevant EU regulations governing the receipt of area aid applications lay down a penalty of one per cent for each working day that an application is late during the 25 calendar days after the closing date.
This means that all area-aid linked payments are reduced by one per cent for each working day an area aid application is received late after 15 May 1996 this year in Ireland and that where such an application is received over 25 calendar days late no 1996 area-aid linked payments at all can be made.
My Department had proposed to issue receipts for 1996 area aid applications within a fortnight of receipt of each such application although the issue of such receipts is not required by the relevant EU regulations as a service to farmers. However, the CPSU industrial action made this impossible.
Nevertheless, now that the industrial action is terminated, I am arranging for the issue of receipts by the end of June to all farmers who submitted 1996 area aid applications so that they will be reassured their livestock and arable aid payments can be made to them later in 1996. Any applicant who does not receive such a receipt may then submit any proof of posting he/she has to the area aid unit of my Department.
I am satisfied from the number of 1996 area aid applications lodged to date that there is no serious shortfall in the number of applications lodged.
