Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 29 April 2010
251 Deputy Seán Sherlock asked the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when all 2009 REPS 4 payment will be awarded; the number of farmers that have applied for REPS 4; the number of these applicants that have been paid on a county basis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17104/10]
Amharc ar fhreagraOut of 29,376 farmers due payments in REPS 4, 100% payments have issued to over 21,000 as of 23 April 2010, with a further 1,342 payments issuing this week. Details are set out on a county-by-county basis in the table.
The processing of REPS 4 payments is governed by EU Regulations which require exhaustive administrative checks and on-the-spot inspections. In most parts of the country, the processing of payments is well advanced and the majority of participants have received their full payments for 2009. In a significant number of cases, however, the administrative checks raised issues and queries which required further detailed examination. My Department's staff have been working to resolve these as quickly as possible. Many of these cases require the applicants' planners to amend the farm plans that were submitted originally. The applicants concerned have been made aware of the position and the applications will be further processed without delay on receipt of amended plans.
I am acutely aware of the situation in the Department's local offices where, because of the Government's moratorium on recruitment and promotion in the civil service, two supervisory posts are vacant. Officials in the posts concerned carry out an essential role, from an audit and accreditation point of view, in authorizing claims for payment. My Department has attempted, without success to date, to resolve the situation and is continuing to urgently examine other possible solutions with a view to releasing payments as soon as possible.
|
County |
REPS 4 applicants |
Paid as at 23 April 2010 |
|
Carlow |
300 |
249 |
|
Cavan |
1,101 |
717 |
|
Clare |
1,333 |
1,164 |
|
Cork |
3,221 |
1,722 |
|
Donegal |
1,898 |
1,667 |
|
Dublin |
51 |
32 |
|
Galway |
2,757 |
1,898 |
|
Kerry |
1,999 |
898 |
|
Kildare |
373 |
309 |
|
Kilkenny |
833 |
662 |
|
Laois |
761 |
651 |
|
Leitrim |
880 |
652 |
|
Limerick |
1,344 |
1,076 |
|
Longford |
681 |
555 |
|
Louth |
218 |
160 |
|
Mayo |
2,703 |
1,779 |
|
Meath |
561 |
360 |
|
Monaghan |
903 |
621 |
|
Offaly |
706 |
562 |
|
Roscommon |
1,405 |
1,185 |
|
Sligo |
917 |
621 |
|
Tipperary Nth |
854 |
718 |
|
Tipperary Sth |
1,004 |
726 |
|
Waterford |
675 |
470 |
|
Westmeath |
709 |
617 |
|
Wexford |
783 |
602 |
|
Wicklow |
406 |
328 |
|
Total |
29,376 |
21,001 |
