Vol. 481 No. 1
101 Mr. Yates asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he will expedite an early decision on the eligibility of a person (details supplied) in County Wexford for the early farm retirement pension; the current stage of the application; and when a decision will be given. [15284/97]
The application was received in the local office on 25 July 1997. For some time, there has been a delay in processing applications under the early retirement scheme due to scarce staff resources. I am making arrangements to ensure that unavoidable delays do not result in the applicants being penalised and to have commencement dates adjusted to take account of any such delays.
