John Ellis
Ceist:219 Mr. Ellis asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if his Department will now make a REP scheme payment to a person (details supplied) in County Leitrim. [18826/03]
Written Answers. - Grant Payments.
The application in this case was lodged on 3 April 2003 and is being processed in accordance with the targets set out in the protocol on direct payments to farmers.
John McGuinness
Ceist:220 Mr. McGuinness asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if suckler cow premium payments for 2002 will be made to a person (details supplied) in County Kilkenny; the reason for the delay in making the payments; and if the matter will be expedited. [18827/03]
The person named applied for premium on 14 cows and three heifers under the 2002 suckler cow premium scheme on 1 July 2002. When processing the application, it was found that seven of the animals declared as cows were, in fact, heifers, leaving the number of heifers in excess of the maximum 40% heifer allowance. The herd owner was informed that this could lead to the animals in excess of the 40% being rejected from his claim with consequent penalty if evidence could not be provided to show that the animals were cows at the time of application.
The applicant was also informed at this time that a 1% late application penalty would apply to any grants due as his application was lodged after the closing date of 28 June 2002 and he was also requested to provide his PPSN number. The herd owner did not reply and was again contacted on 20 November and 11 December 2002. He replied on 24 December 2002, stating that he had a problem obtaining tags but did not provide any information that would assist in the processing of his claim. Records on the CMMS showed that, during the six-month retention period, some of the heifers calved and the herd owner sold 12 cows and two heifers. He was written to on 27 February 2003 requesting him to nominate suitable replacements for the animals that were sold but he did not reply to this correspondence.
The delay in the processing of the application is due to the failure of the person named to provide details as requested. Until such time as these details are provided it will not be possible to process this application further.