Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 17 January 2024
1199. Deputy Michael Creed asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when a person (details supplied) in County Cork will receive their ACRES payment.; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56596/23]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs the deputy is aware, and in line with the commitment in the Programme for Government, a flagship environmental scheme, namely the Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES), was launched in 2022. There was exceptional demand for entry into the Scheme, which demonstrates the interest of farmers to take on actions to address climate, biodiversity and environmental issues.
It was initially planned to take in applicants in two Tranches, with 30,000 in Tranche 1. A decision was made to accept all valid applications submitted in Tranche 1, and there are now just under 46,000 farmers actively involved in the Scheme. The decision to accept all 46,000 applicants into Tranche 1 has put significant pressure on the ability to pay all participants in 2023.
My Department has been working to expedite payments, but with the unprecedented numbers, it has not been possible to get all participants paid in ACRES by the end of 2023. Due to the additional complexity associated with the Co-operation Project (CP) stream, payments for ACRES CP participants will begin to issue in February 2024. The person named is a participant in ACRES CP.
