Vol. 513 No. 1
275 Mr. McGuinness asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development if an application for a cattle premium for a person (details supplied) in County Kilkenny will be withdrawn in view of an error in the paperwork; and the policy in relation to these issues. [1498/00]
The person named made the following applications for special beef premium: – five animals on 22 April 1999; five animals on 11 November 1999 and 27 animals on 23 December 1999.
The person named also made a suckler cow application for 60 Cows on 27 May 1999.
Under EU regulations governing the special beef premium and suckler cow schemes, a stocking density limit of two livestock units per hectare applies based on the forage area declared on an applicant's area aid application. The person named declared 23.03 forage hectares on his area aid application and is therefore entitled to payment on a maximum of 46.06 reckonable livestock units. Reckonable livestock units consist of animals submitted by the applicant for special beef premium, suckler cow premium and ewe premium schemes with notional livestock units derived from any milk quota held.
The first Special Beef Premium application utilises 4.6 livestock units. His suckler cow application utilises the remaining 41.46 livestock units. No further payment can therefore issue.
Payment for five special beef premium animals totalling £256.83 was issued to the person named on 1 November 1999. Payment of £3,256.02 under the 1999 suckler cow premium scheme was issued to the person named on 23 December 1999 and a suckler cow euro compensation payment of £288.99 also issued to the person named on 23 December 1999.
The EU regulations governing these schemes specifically provide that animals applied on in excess of the individual herdowner's permitted stocking rate of two livestock units per hectare are deemed to have been paid the instalment applied for. As far as the special beef premium scheme is concerned these animals are specifically excluded from qualifying from that instalment of premium at a future date. Withdrawal of applications is not permitted in these circumstances.
276 Mr. McGuinness asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development the assistance or grants, if any, available to horse breeders; and if he will give details of the horse headage payment scheme and the method of application. [1499/00]
Grant aid was available to horse breeders through a number of quality breeding schemes under the EU co-financed Operational Programme for Agriculture, Rural Development and Forestry, 1994 to 1999. Payments under these schemes are ongoing this year but only on claims which were lodged with my Department and in respect of which my Department had entered into commitments before 31 December 1999.
Proposals for funding for further grants schemes for the benefit of horse breeders and the infrastructure within which such breeding takes place, farm improvement grants for housing and handling facilities for horses and assistance for training for the horse industry for the period 2000 to 2006 have been put forward as part of the national development plan for the development of the horse industry. Details of all the schemes will be announced when the plan has been approved by the EU Commission.
The equine headage scheme applies in the areas of the country designated as more severely handicapped, less severely handicapped and as coastal areas with specific handicaps, the disadvantaged areas. The scheme operates annually. A specific application period, with opening and closing dates, is set by my Department and application forms are posted to applicants who were in the scheme in previous years.
Grants are paid on breeding mares which are registered in the applicant's name in the Connemara Pony Breeders' Society or in the Irish Horse Register. Rates of payment are £70 per mare on the first eight eligible mares and £66 per mare on the next 22 eligible mares.
To qualify for grants, an applicant must be a registered herdowner aged 18 years or over; occupy and farm at least 3 hectares in a disadvantaged area; undertake to continue in farming in a disadvantaged area for at least five years from the date of first payment under any disadvantaged area scheme and satisfy my Department that he or she is in a position to honour this undertaking; have submitted a valid area aid application for the year of equine headage scheme application; undertake to keep the mares on which headage grants are being claimed for a minimum of two calendar months from the day after the date of receipt of the application by my Department; supply his or her RSI number if applying for total headage payments of more than £500 in any calendar year.
The above is a summary of the detailed terms and conditions which apply to the equine headage scheme and I have arranged for copies of the application form and terms and conditions for this year's scheme to be sent to the Deputy when they become available in April 2000.
277 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo will receive 1999 headage and premia. [1501/00]
As stated in my reply to Parliamentary Question No. 28 of 16 December 1999, the person named included two commonages in his 1999 area aid application, but only provided proof of his entitlement to claim on one of these commonage. He was written to in this connection, and has since provided the area aid unit with proof for the second commonage. The application has now been fully processed and any payments due will issue as soon as possible.
278 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development when persons (details supplied) in County Mayo will receive full entitlement of 1999 cattle and sheep headage and premia. [1503/00]
The amended maps which the area aid unit received in this case overlap into an adjacent parcel of land claimed by another applicant. Both herd owners have been written to, with a view to resolving the problem and a response is awaited. No further payments can issue until this matter has been satisfactorily resolved.
One of the persons named was paid £420.00 under the 1999 sheep headage scheme on 3 November 1999, £42.00 under the 1999 sheep headage top-up on 8 December 1999, and £451.39 under the 1999 cattle headage scheme on 3 November 1999. These payments were based on a forage area of 10.30 hectares. When the issues concerning his 1999 area aid application are resolved his entitlements under the schemes will be recalculated.
He was paid the 60% advance of £399.42 under the 1999 suckler cow premium scheme on 1 November 1999 and £35.45 under the euro-compensation for the 1999 suckler cow premium scheme on 20 December 1999. Under the 1999 ewe premium scheme he was paid the first instalment of £436.99 on 11 June 1999 and the second instalment of £223.74 on 20 October 1999.
