Martin Ferris (Kerry North-West Limerick, Sinn Fein)
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261. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will confirm that the €27.2 million from the European Union, which was to be reimbursed to farmers who had deductions from their direct payments over €2000 in 2013 has been paid to farmers, as was promised, in early 2015. [10140/15]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Following the adoption of the CAP Reform proposals during the Irish Presidency in June 2013, work commenced immediately in Ireland on the implementation of the various Pillar I and Pillar II Schemes, which had to be introduced by January 2015. The main Pillar I Schemes are the Basic Payment Scheme and the Greening Payment. The two measures replaced the Single Farm Payment. Each year over €1.2 billion of payments under these Schemes will be paid to approximately 130,000 Irish farmers. In view of the level of payments involved, the implementation of the Schemes was prioritised by my Department. Having successfully launched the online application system for both the Basic Payment Scheme and the Greening Payment during the third week of February 2015, work will now commence on the processing of payments to farmers from the fund created to refund the 2013 Financial Discipline deduction.