Farm Improvement Scheme.

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 2 April 2008

Wednesday, 2 April 2008

Ceisteanna (600)

Michael Creed

Ceist:

665 Deputy Michael Creed asked the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if her Department has quantified the number of applicants under the farm improvement scheme who are being deemed illegible due to the fact that their application was not accompanied by a planning approval; the number of such applicants who have evidence of a valid planning application having been submitted simultaneous to their application to her Department under the FIS; the estimated cost of approving all such applicants under the FIS; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [12272/08]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (Deputy Mary Coughlan)

Some 12,675 applications were received under the Farm Improvement Scheme prior to its suspension on 31 October 2007. These applications are currently being processed up to the level of funding made available for the Scheme under the 2006 Partnership agreement, Towards 2016.

The terms and conditions of the Scheme provide that, in order to be considered valid, applications which require planning permission must be accompanied by either a decision to grant planning permission or the grant of full planning permission. It is not possible at this stage to determine the number of applications that have been submitted without the required planning permission or to indicate the financial commitment, in grant terms, represented by such applications.