Departmental Staff.

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 25 April 2007

Wednesday, 25 April 2007

Ceisteanna (177)

Seymour Crawford

Ceist:

199 Mr. Crawford asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the number of extra staff she has relocated to the Farm Development Offices to deal with the new grant application; her views on whether without full approval clearly stating the actual grant moneys payable for each grant application it would be difficult, and in some cases impossible, for young farmers to obtain bridging finance; if she will assure this Deputy that the necessary staff will be relocated as a matter of urgency; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15408/07]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

I am aware of the difficulties caused by the massive increase in applications under the Farm Waste Management Scheme and recently introduced revised procedures in order to speed up the process of issuing approvals under the Scheme. These include the streamlining of administrative procedures for the approval of applications and the release to applicants of the newly revised Standard Costings used to assess the financial implications of proposed investments carried out under the Scheme. As a result, the number of approvals issued to farmers to commence work under the Scheme has increased significantly in recent weeks. The staffing levels in the local AES offices of my Department are also reviewed on an ongoing basis to ensure that the necessary staffing resources are in place to ensure delivery of the Scheme.

The revised Standard Costings used to calculate the level of grants under the Farm Waste Management Scheme are now available on my Department's web-site. Farmers, together with their advisers, are therefore in a position to determine the level of grant likely to be available for proposed works.