Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I wish to raise two issues, the first of which relates to prompt direct payments. During August, a number of the farming organisations raised concerns about late payments and delays in notifying farmers of problems, be it in the context of the basic payment scheme, the ANC scheme, TAMS or whatever. This was despite commitments made by the Minister or in the farmer's charter. What is the current state of play and what proposals has the IFA on making the system work more efficiently and bypassing bureaucracy?

The second issue relates to the problems experienced by grain growers. Perhaps Mr. Dunne will elaborate. I spoke with the IFA chairman in Donegal yesterday. He appreciated that Mr. Healy had visited the county. I understand that the county organisation hopes to meet the Minister in the coming week regarding this issue. The chairman stressed to me that there was a crisis for the affected farmers, specifically in the north west. Mr. Dunne issued a press release, so perhaps he will elaborate on what he has seen on the ground. Does the IFA have proposals on how to assist these farmers?