Michael Fitzmaurice (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Looking at these figures, am I correct in understanding that 6,629 fewer farmers will be partaking in environmental schemes this year? Some 330 more farmers will be involved with organic schemes. Farmers are going to be losing €10 million though from the European fund or single farm payment, which is not the Minister's fault. Under the knowledge transfer heading, farmers will have about €4.5 million less in their pockets, while there will be €1.5 million less in their pockets under the sheep welfare scheme. The forestry programme must be dealt with clearly. We had said we were going to plant 8,000 ha last year. What happened to those moneys? We had budgeted for putting in the plants, and farmers get a percentage of that figure, as well the moneys participants get each year. What happened to that money? When we look at the figures for this year, there is not a hope in hell of hitting 8,000 ha because the area is in chaos again.

According to the figures I am looking at, therefore, if we add up all the millions of euro farmers are going to be down, it will be about €70 million in total. To put it simply, that money is coming out of their pockets. When we look at the figures, where is that money going to be allocated to put it back into farmers' pockets this year? Am I correct in saying approximately 6,600 fewer people will be participating in environmental schemes this year? Am I also correct in saying the knowledge transfer scheme has decreased from approximately €5 million to circa €500,000, or something like that, off the top of my head? The Minister is not at fault for this aspect, but will €10 million less be coming out of Brussels as well? Am I also correct in stating that last year we did not even reach half the budget allocated for forestry? According to the figures I am looking at, this year is going to be the same.

I need one other issue clarified. A figure of €23,000 or thereabouts is down for carbon tax or something. What is that about? How many farmers will be going into this pilot thing which the Minister has been going on about? My understanding on the organic scheme is it encompasses the dairy and tillage sectors. Beef farmers do not seem to be scoring that high in this area. When I talk about farmers being down on money in their pockets, am I correct in saying there are big drops in funding in schemes associated with knowledge transfer and sheep welfare? The figures we have show there is a drop in the single farm payment or basic payment scheme, BPS, whatever we want to call it. Some 6,600 fewer farmers are now in the environmental scheme as well, which represents a great deal of money on average. When we asked the Minister what the average payment was on GLAS, he told us it was approximately €4,200.

We can go through figures all day and look them up and down and inside out, but overall there is less money in farmers' pockets. Another scheme, for example, and I think it is beef genomics, is down 37%. It could be the beef exceptional aid measure, BEAM, scheme, I am not sure, but the Minister mentioned something about that aspect earlier. Where are we going to make up the decreases to ensure these farmers are going to get money into their pockets? While the figures could be looking lovely in an overall context, it is the amount of money in farmers' pockets which is important. There is extra spending under wages in this Vote and that is understandable. There is also extra spending under the headings of Brexit and X, Y and Z and that is understandable too. No one is debating that at all. What I am looking at, though, is the deficit in farmers' pockets. Compared with last year, will the Minister tell me where that shortfall in the money going into farmers' pockets is going to be made up this year?