Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Funding for the sheep welfare scheme in 2017 was €1.9 million, in 2018 it was €1.8 million and we are budgeting for €1.8 million in 2019. It is a demand-led scheme. If it is exceeded we will pay but we are basing our budget on the previous year's applications. It is true to say the number of ewes in the country is more than the number of applications we receive. This is unfortunate because it is a sector that could do with support and we have been happy to introduce the scheme. We have based our provision for 2019 on the take-up of previous years.