Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 29 March 2018
317. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if TAMS II funds can be carried forward; and if not, if they must be returned to the Exchequer or the EU budget in view of the fact that the first TAMS II approvals are now starting to lapse as the time for applying for payment has expired. [14844/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe TAMS budget for the duration of the RDP (2014-2020) is €395m. Payment claims continue to be received and processed on an ongoing basis, as is the case with applications for approval. The number of TAMS II outstanding approvals is currently 9,500. The usage of the budget is dependent on the volume and value of payment claims submitted by approved participants as they complete their approved works and the expenditure is monitored closely.
I would encourage all farmers who have an approval in place to undertake their planned investments and to submit a payment claim as soon as the approved work is completed. The budget of €395m is in place for that purpose.
As regards the contribution of national and EU funding for RDP schemes, all expenditure on schemes is nationally funded in the first instance and the co funded amounts are then claimed in arrears from the EU. Exchequer funds are allocated on an annual basis with estimated annual requirements taking account of commitments expected to mature within that period and within overall budget constraints. Public Financial Procedures provide scope to carry-over up to 10% of a Department’s total capital allocation from one year to the following year. Any unspent EAFRD funds in a year are carried forward to subsequent years and the overall amount of €2.19 billion EAFRD funding for the entire period is not affected.
