Michael McNamara (Clare, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I want to ask about GLAS but I am not sure whether it is appropriate. There are restrictions, particularly on the number of hectares in respect of which farmers can apply to the scheme. How were these received in Brussels, particularly where the restriction is applied to Natura lands? It seems unreasonable that farmers who have faced the constraints of having to farm decimated lands under special protection areas, SPAs, or special areas of conservation, SACs, can only get GLAS payments in respect of the same number of hectares as farmers anywhere else in the country. It seems to fly in the face of the purpose of much of the Common Agricultural Policy and requirements that farmers be compensated for farming Natura lands. This decision has been made solely by Ireland, but was there much opposition to it at Commission level?