Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 26 March 2019
86. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of farmers in receipt of a combined payment of more than €60,000 from the basic payment scheme and the greening payment; the amount paid to these farmers under both payments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13804/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraUnder the Direct Payment system a farmer's payment can be a combination of payment under four separate schemes:
- Basic Payment Scheme (BPS)
- Payment for Agricultural Practices beneficial for the Climate and the Environment (Greening Payment)
- Young Farmers Scheme (YFS)
- Aid for protein crops
All eligible farmers will receive a payment under the BPS and a Greening Payment. The Greening payment is a top up of the Basic Payment Scheme and amounts to approximately 44% of the total value of entitlements activated. Over 90% of farmers automatically qualify for the Greening Payment on the basis of their current farming practices. The remainder are required to undertake specific measures to qualify.
123,307 eligible applications were received under the 2018 Basic Payment Scheme and payments amounting to €1.174bn have issued to 123,028 applicants.
Of these, a total of 870 applicants have received a combined BPS and Greening payment of more than €60,000 amounting to an overall payment of €73.24m, of which €50.86m was paid under BPS and €22.38m was paid under Greening.
