Vol. 496 No. 7
118 Mr. U. Burke asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the cost of litigation to the State involving the REP scheme section of his Department in a case (details supplied); the cost of each court appearance; and his views on whether there has been a prudent expenditure of taxpayers money in this case. [24012/98]
Three Circuit Court cases have already been heard in the matter of the named person, each of which have been successfully defended by the Department. Each party has borne its own costs other than for a sum of £500 awarded to the plaintiff in one case. The legal costs to the State to date for the services of counsel are £3,396.63, including VAT. Where proceedings are taken against the Department, the Department accepts legal advice as to entering a defence and it is a matter for the courts to determine the final outcome. If the Department had not entered a defence in these cases the costs to the State could have been considerably greater.
119 Mr. U. Burke asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food his views on the policy of officials in his Department in the REP scheme section to continue to involve his Department in costly legal defences of cases; the number of cases pending in this section; the amount of taxpayers money spent to date in this regard. [24013/98]
The acceptance of an application under the REP scheme is subject to the general scheme conditions and each application must be justified in the context of Council Regulation 2078/92/EC. Where there is a doubt about eligibility, applications for REPS must be assessed thoroughly to ensure that they are genuine and comply with the terms and conditions of the REP scheme. The legal basis and administrative provisions for the implementation of the rural environment scheme are set out in the REP scheme document. The detailed requirements are contained in the agrienvironmental specifications. Any Department decision on an application is based on an assessment of the eligibility of the application in the context of the scheme rules and conditions. Additionally member states of the EU are required under the terms of Article 8 of Regulation (EEC) No. 729/70 to satisfy themselves that transactions financed by the EU are actually carried out and are executed correctly, to prevent and deal with irregularities and to recover sums lost as a result of irregularities or negligence. Member states must bear the cost of irregularities or negligence as a result of their actions.
Where an application is rejected, it is open to the applicant to appeal the decision to the Department giving grounds for the appeal. It is, also open to an applicant to take legal action in relation to any application which is rejected. Where proceedings are taken against the Department, the Department accepts legal advice as to entering a defence and it is a matter for the courts to determine the final outcome.
