Donal Carey
Ceist:68 Mr. D. Carey asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food when a person (details supplied) in County Clare will be paid his cattle premia. [20694/97]
Written Answers. - Grant Payments.
Payments are continuing to issue to farmers under all premium and headage schemes.
While the requirements of the land parcel identification system which is fully operational in 1997 under EU rules have been a complicating factor in processing the various premium and headage applications this year, it is expected that most remaining payments will be made in the very near future.
Donal Carey
Ceist:69 Mr. D. Carey asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food when a person (details supplied) in County Clare will receive his headage and suckler grants. [20695/97]
Payments are continuing to issue to farmers under all premium and headage schemes.
While the requirements of the land parcel identification system which is fully operational in 1997 under EU rules have been a complicating factor in processing the various premium and headage applications this year, it is expected that most remaining payments will be made in the very near future.
Donal Carey
Ceist:70 Mr. D. Carey asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food when a person (details supplied) in County Clare will be paid his headage grant. [20696/97]
Payments are continuing to issue to farmers under all premium and headage schemes.
While the requirements of the land parcel identification system which is fully operational in 1997 under EU rules have been a complicating factor in processing the various premium and headage applications this year, it is expected that most remaining payments will be made in the very near future.
Donal Carey
Ceist:71 Mr. D. Carey asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food when a person (details supplied) in County Clare will be paid his ten month premium in view of the fact he applied in 1996. [20697/97]
My Department has recently received the necessary milk quota details from the person concerned and are now making arrangements to have the relevant 1996 payments made within the next two weeks.
David Stanton
Ceist:72 Mr. Stanton asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the reason a ten month premium has not been paid for a person (details supplied) in County Cork; and when it will be paid. [20698/97]
Payments are continuing to issue to farmers under all premium and headage schemes.
While the requirements of the land parcel identification system which is fully operational in 1997 under EU rules have been a complicating factor in processing the various premium and headage applications this year, it is expected that most remaining payments will be made in the very near future.
Ceist:
73 Mr. Moynihan asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the date on which special beef premium quota rights were lost to Ireland and the number involved in this regard; if the country is likely to exceed its quota in the near future; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20699/97]
The decision to reduce Ireland's quota for the special beef premium was taken at the meeting of the Council of Agriculture Ministers on 29 October 1996 in the context of a package of measures aimed at rebalancing the beef market in the EU following the sharp fall in beef consumption arising from the BSE scare earlier in the year. The reduction in the special beef premium quota on the EU wide basis was 2.1 million premium rights, of which 284,000 rights related to Ireland. It should be noted, however, that the lower quota applies for 1997 and 1988 only.
The total number of animals recorded by my Department as being submitted to date in 1997 for the ten month special beef premium is some 765,000 head. As the quota for 1997 is 1,002,458 quota rights, the balance remaining up to 5 December next, when applications close for the year, is some 237,458 quota rights. In view of the fact that 620,000 male calves are registered as having been born between 1 January 1997 and 5 April 1997, and are thus eligible for submission for the ten month special beef premium in 1997, there is a possibility that the quota will be exceeded in 1997.
Ivan Yates
Ceist:74 Mr. Yates asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the level, if any, of subsidies or penalty which will apply in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Wexford in view of the fact that the report relating to the forage area has been submitted to his Department. [20700/97]
The person named submitted an area aid application in 1997 with a declared forage area of 17.09 hectares. The application was selected randomly for an area aid inspection. On inspection, an area of 14.99 hectares was found, indicating an overclaim of 2.10 hectares (14 per cent).
Where an overclaim is found following an inspection, the EU Regulations which govern the area aid schemes specify that penalties must be applied. The appropriate penalty for a 14 per cent overclaim is to reduce the area found by double the overclaim resulting in an area of 10.79 hectares. This area will be used to calculate the premium payments due to the herdowner. The payments will issue within the next few weeks.