Michael Ring
Ceist:267 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo will receive a 2001 suckler cow premium payment. [15740/02]
Written Answers. - Grant Payments.
The person named applied on seven cows under the 2001 suckler cow premium scheme on 29 June 2001. Two of the cows applied on were not registered on the cattle movement monitoring system, CMMS, as having calved at any time and one of the cows was slaughtered within the six months retention period of the scheme and was not replaced as required under the terms and conditions of the scheme. He was informed on 8 February 2002 that no payment could therefore be made under the 2001 suckler cow premium scheme as he had contravened clause 26 of the terms and conditions of the scheme. The person named requested a review of this decision on 8 March 2002. My Department asked for further information regarding the calving dates for the two animals on 9 April 2002 and based on the reply dated 27 June 2002 it was decided to accept one of the two animals as a heifer and to delete the second animal from the application since no independent evidence was provided that it had ever calved. He was advised on 5 July 2002 that his application would be processed further on the basis on five cows and one heifer submitted for premium. As he disposed of one cow during the retention period, with no eligible replacement, a reduction penalty would apply to the grants due on his remaining five eligible animals, i.e. four cows and one heifer. However, when his application was subsequently cross-checked against the CMMS it was found that the heifer had also been slaughtered within the six months retention period with no eligible replacement for this animal.
My Department advised the person named on 9 September 2002 that two animals were now rejected from his application and that a reduction penalty would apply to the grants due on the remaining four eligible cows. The person named confirmed that he accepted this penalty. Payment of his 100% entitlement under the 2001 suckler cow premium scheme, amounting to €549.77, issued to him on 12 September 2002; as did payment of €7.15 under the 2001 suckler cow premium scheme euro compensation.
Michael Ring
Ceist:268 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo will receive a suckler cow premium 2001 payment. [15741/02]
The person named applied on 31 animals under the 2001 suckler cow premium scheme on 6 March 2001. At an inspection of his herd on 5 September 2001 four of the animals applied on were absent and he was advised that as he had contravened the terms and conditions of the scheme no grants were payable to him. The person named subsequently advised my Department that the four animals died between 1 and 20 October 2001 and were disposed of at a local knackery. My Department wrote to the person named on 12 February 2002 advising him that as he had failed to establish that the cows were in his herd at the date of application he was not entitled to payment under the 2001 suckler cow premium scheme. The person named wrote to my Department on 6 June 2002 stating that the four cows had actually been buried on his own land.
As there is no record of a burial licence having issued from my Department in respect of these cows nor any notification of their deaths to the cattle movement monitoring system's database, the person named was informed that he was not entitled to any grants under the 2001 scheme. He was advised that he could appeal this decision to the agriculture appeals office and an appeal from him was received at that office on 23 September 2002.