Michael Ring
Ceist:172 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo will be paid a 1998 cattle headage grant. [22417/98]
Written Answers. - Grant Payments.
The area aid application from the person concerned has been processed and any payment due will issue as soon as possible.
Michael Ring
Ceist:173 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo will receive a 1998 cattle headage grant and suckler cow premium and a 1997 extensification payment. [22418/98]
The person named applied for suckler cow premium and cattle headage grants on 5 June 1998. His application under the cattle headage scheme has been cleared for payment and a cheque will issue to him within the next two weeks.
Processing of his 1998 suckler cow premium application is not fully complete as yet. It is hoped to finalise processing shortly and if entitlement to payment is established an advance payment will issue without delay. Payment of the 1997 extensification premium is expected to issue to the person named within the next two weeks.
Michael Ring
Ceist:174 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo will receive a 1998 cattle headage grant. [22419/98]
Difficulties have arisen in processing the area aid application of the person named. When these have been resolved, any payments due will issue as soon as possible.
John Perry
Ceist:175 Mr. Perry asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if a 1998 cattle headage grant will be paid to a person (details supplied) in County Sligo; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22469/98]
Without a valid area aid application for the relevant year, headage payments cannot issue to a herdowner. The person named did not submit an area aid application in 1998 and, consequently, payments cannot issue in respect of a 1998 cattle headage application.
John Perry
Ceist:176 Mr. Perry asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if area aid problems will be resolved for a person (details supplied) in County Sligo; if payment of a 1998 cattle headage grant will be made; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22470/98]
The person named has arrears of land purchase annuities amounting to £4,537.50 in respect of land allotted to him by the Land Commission. He recently signed a mandate form enabling the Land Commission to deduct the amount due from his headage and premia grants. As outlined in the reply to Parliamentary Question No. 325 of 30 September 1998, in which the Deputy requested a repayment settlement over a four year period, the Land Commission agreed to spread payment of arrears over four years by deductions from his headage and premia payments. His 1998 cattle headage entitlement, his 1998 sheep headage entitlement and the balance of his 1998 ewe premium entitlement are being offset against the annuity arrears. His entitlement under the 1998 suckler cow premium scheme will be paid directly to the person named within seven days.
Jimmy Deenihan
Ceist:177 Mr. Deenihan asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food when suckler cow grants will be paid to a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22492/98]
Difficulties have arisen in processing the area aid application of the person named. When these have been resolved, any payments due will issue as soon as possible.
Jimmy Deenihan
Ceist:178 Mr. Deenihan asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food when headage grant payments will be made to a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22494/98]
The area aid application of the person named has been processed and any payments due will issue as soon as possible.
Michael Ring
Ceist:181 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo will receive the remainder of money owed to him in respect of BSE compensation in view of the fact that the cheque issued was only for one third of his entitlement. [22522/98]
The regulations governing payment of the 1996 BSE compensation package, which was paid out in October 1996, provided for payment of top-ups in respect of animals which qualified for payment under the 1995 EU suckler cow premium scheme and 1995 EU special beef premium scheme. The regulations also provided for adjustments, upwards and downwards, later on to take account of the number of animals qualifying for payment under the 1996 EU suckler cow premium scheme and the 1996 EU special beef premium scheme. In effect, the regulations required that a comparison be carried out betweeen the number of animals qualifying for payment under the 1995 schemes and the number qualfying under the 1996 schemes.
Under the terms and conditions of the regulation, only money recouped from farmers who had fewer animals qualifying for premium under the 1996 suckler cow and 1996 special beef premium schemes could be used to make payments to those farmers who had more eligible animals qualifying under the 1996 schemes. As the number of eligible animals qualifying for premium under the 1996 schemes exceeded the number qualifying under the 1995 schemes, the rates for payment on the additional animals had to be adjusted downwards accordingly. The person named had 15 additional eligible animals for payment under the 1996 suckler cow scheme and 12 additional animals qualifying for payment under the 1996 special beef premium scheme. He was paid top-up amounting to £108.60 — 15 × £7.24; and £119.76 — 12 × £9.98 respectively on these animals. The person concerned has, therefore, received his full entitlement under EU regeulations.
Michael Ring
Ceist:182 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo will receive 1998 cattle and sheep headage grants. [22523/98]
The area aid application from the person concerned has been processed and any payment due will issue as soon as possible.
Michael Ring
Ceist:183 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo will receive 1998 cattle headage, sheep headage and suckler cow premia payments. [22525/98]
The area aid application from the person concerend has been processed and any payment due will issue as soon as possible.
Michael Ring
Ceist:184 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo will be paid 1998 sheep headage grants. [22528/98]
The area aid application from the person concerned has been processed and any payment due will issue as soon as possible.
Michael Ring
Ceist:185 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo will be paid 1998 cattle headage grants in view of the fact that he submitted documents to the area aid unit several weeks ago. [22529/98]
In the processing of the area aid application of the person named it was discovered that one parcel of land was being incorrectly claimed by him. The person named has submitted a map for the correct parcel of land which is now being digitised. When digitisation is completed, any payments due will issue as soon as possible.
John Perry
Ceist:186 Mr. Perry asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if area aid problems will be resolved for a person (details supplied) in County Leitrim; if 1998 suckler cow and beef premium payments will be made; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22531/98]
Difficulties have arisen in processing the area aid application from the person named. When these have been resolved, any payment due will issue as soon as possible.
Michael Noonan
Ceist:187 Mr. Noonan asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if a sum of £7,500, deducted from the compensation due to a person (details supplied) in County Limerick arising from the depopulation of his farm due to brucellosis, will be rebated to him; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22532/98]
There was a brucellosis breakdown in the herd of the person named in December 1997. Following a full examination by the district veterinary office of the pre and post movement blood testing record of bought-in eligible animals in the relevant period, the herd was categorised as category two in accordance with the brucellosis eradication scheme grant arrangements in place for herd breakdowns occurring between 15 September, 1997 and 26 April, 1998. The appropriate rates of brucellosis reactor and depopulation grants due to the person named have been paid.
Liam Aylward
Ceist:188 Mr. Aylward asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he will review the penalty imposed on payment of the 22 month suckler beef premium to a person (details supplied) in County Kilkenny. [22533/98]
On 29 January 1998 the person concerned submitted an application in respect of 41 animals under the 22 month special beef premium scheme. During the course of an on-farm inspection, two animals were presented without identity tags. These two animals were duly rejected with a consequent reduction penalty on the remaining animals, as laid down under the terms and conditions governing the scheme. The herdowner appealed this decision to the district inspector who, having reviewed the case, upheld the original decision. The option of having the case independently reviewed by the headage and premia appeals unit was offered to the herdowner but this offer has not been availed of to date.