Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 30 November 2021
767. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his plans to engage with the land mobility service to incentivise young and potential farmers and new entrants to utilise the service in order to deliver generational renewal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [58921/21]
Amharc ar fhreagra768. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he has plans to work with farming organisations to help spread awareness of the land mobility service which has been greatly affected in terms of awareness events during the Covid-19 pandemic; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [58922/21]
Amharc ar fhreagra769. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if consideration will be given to his Department providing funding to the land mobility service in order that it can acquire the adequate resources needed to achieve optimum delivery for the desired service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [58923/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 767 to 769, inclusive, together.
The challenge of generational renewal is widely recognised both at national and EU level with the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) citing it as one of its nine key objectives.
Food Vision 2030, the new strategy for the agri-food sector (gov.ie - Food Vision 2030 – A World Leader in Sustainable Food Systems) also highlights the challenge of generational renewal and proposes a number of actions to address this issue including the promotion of land mobility and succession planning.
We all agree that facilitating generational renewal is critical to ensure a bright future for the agri-food sector.
The Land Mobility Service (LMS) has proven itself important in the delivery of land mobility and access to land through assisting collaborative arrangements.
It has been supported by my Department over the last number of years with the Department providing funding of €27,000 between 2014 and 2016, and €50,000 per annum for the five years 2017 to 2021. To the end of 2019, over 520 arrangements covering approximately 19,000 hectares had been facilitated. In recognition of this, my Department is engaged with the Land Mobility Service on potential future support and I have just announced a 100% increase in the funding for next year to €100,000.
The Deputy may be aware that the Land Mobility Service also receives funding from the wider sector and a contribution from land-owners and farmers.
Notwithstanding the impact of COVID-19, “Inquiries, Engagements and Arrangements” continued to grow in 2020 with the cumulative figure in excess of 600 covering over 22,000 hectares, with a final Report on Outputs for 2021 due to be finalised shortly by LMS.
On generational renewal generally, under the current CAP the Young Farmers Scheme (with payments of €110m benefitting over 8,000 farmers each year) and the National Reserve (with €35 million allocated since 2015) provide financial support to young farmers during the crucial early years of setting up a farm enterprise.
Additionally, under the TAMS II Young Farmer Capital Investment Scheme, young farmers can avail of a 60% grant rate as compared to the standard rate of 40% (over €133m paid to over 5,000 farmers). There are additional supports at national level, with strong taxation measures assisting land mobility and facilitating succession (worth some €200 million per annum), access to finance measures and a range of educational, training and advisory services.
Specifically Long-Term Leasing Income Tax Relief has been an important driver of land mobility by providing access to land and security of tenure for younger farmers and a route to retirement for older farmers. Almost 11,000 beneficiaries were supported under this measure in 2018, with a cost of €27.2 million.
Supporting young farmers, access to land and generational renewal are priorities for me, and I will continue to actively engage on these issues, including with the Land Mobility Service, farm organisations and other stakeholders.
