Mr. Aidan O'Driscoll:

No. I was about to reach the subject. The Deputy mentioned a possible new scheme in the autumn. There will be a new tranche of applications made to the existing GLAS scheme in the autumn, as announced by the Minister, but it will be the same scheme.

To be clear, a farmer can step from tier 3 to tier 2 by embracing a number of different elements, including by using minimum tillage, growing catch crops, availing of low-emission slurry spreading and providing wild bird cover. These measures are available to a significant number of farmers, but not every farmer. The Minister has asked that farmers in tier 3 who could do one of those things consider pursuing the matter and see if it makes sense. If it does, then it would promote them to tier 2.