Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am grateful to the Chairman and committee members for the opportunity to present the Revised Estimates for 2024 to the committee today. My Department's budget for 2024 was specifically designed to support farm and fishing families. This has been achieved with vital livestock schemes secured, environmental schemes bolstered in funding, new infrastructure measures introduced to support farmers who are impacted by the nitrates derogation and support provided for the development of the fishing sector and coastal communities. This is in addition to rolling out the largest ever Common Agricultural Policy, CAP, strategic plan, which amounts to just under €10 billion over the coming years.

For 2024 the total Exchequer contribution to my Department's Vote amounts to €1.954 billion. This is comprised of €1.636 billion in current expenditure and €318 million in capital expenditure. The capital allocation excludes carryover of €45.6 million in capital funding from 2023.

The 2024 provision reflects the discontinuation of funding available under the Brexit Adjustment Reserve as the deadline for all expenditure under that fund expired at the end of last year. While the BAR funding was predominantly expanded in the fisheries sector in 2023, it also supported the genotyping programme for our livestock herd and the national beef welfare scheme for which I have now secured national funding to continue. When account is taken of a number of once-off provisions in 2023, including those arising from Brexit and the war in Ukraine, the 2024 gross provision is 2% higher than that in 2023.

Appropriations-in-aid are expected to increase significantly in 2024 to €436.6 million. When these are considered the 2024 that vote is €1.518 billion.

The Agriculture Vote is subdivided into four expenditure programmes corresponding to the four strategic objectives set out in the cards statement of strategy. I will now speak about each of these four programmes from programme A to programme D and their key themes.

Programme A relates to food safety, animal and plant health, and animal welfare. The total allocation this year is for this programme this year is €379 million. Irish farmers, fishers and agrifood companies, as we know, produce world class food and products to the very highest international standards of food safety and quality. Our food safety and our traceability system are critical to supporting the export of our produce across the globe. Regarding programme expenditure, I am continuing to fund vital services to ensure that those standards are maintained, including the meat inspection service and the various supports provided by Department's testing laboratories. The reduction of funding under this heading is attributable principally to the presence in 2023 of once-off items to be funded by the Brexit Reserve. For example, in 2023 approximately €64 million was paid to the OPW as part of my Department's contribution to the development of the border control post at Rosslare Europort.

Similarly, BAR funding of €20 million was provided last year to develop long-term sustainable solutions for the disposal of meat and bonemeal. Meat and bonemeal are a by-product of the agrifood sector categorised as a high-risk Category 1 material. Pre Brexit this material was exported to Great Britain. However, European regulations prohibit the export of Category 1 meat and bonemeal to non-EU countries. Ireland has received a further dispensation now from the EU to permit the continued exportation of this material to GB until mid-2025. In the meantime, I am continuing with the provision of €6 million of national funds in 2024 to support the development of projects to safely dispose of meat and bonemeal within this jurisdiction.

Programme B deals with farm sector supports and controls. A total of just over €979 million is available to this programme for this year, which is an increase of 2% over last year and is to be paid almost exclusively to farmers. That is in addition to €1.2 billion in funding from the EU on top of that in respect of the various direct payment schemes, meaning that in excess of €2 billion will issue directly to farmers over the course of this year. As we know, this support is vital to farmers who are delivering public goods and environmental benefits for wider society. As well as the environmental benefits involved, this investment also enhances our sustainability credentials which are invaluable as we serve increasingly demanding and knowledgeable customers at home and in our markets across the world.

The agri-climate rural environment scheme, ACRES, has seen an increased allocation of €40 million, bringing the total scheme allocation to €200 million. That is a substantial increase on the 2023 budget of €160 million. The level of interest in ACRES was evident in the number of applications submitted for tranche 1 of the scheme.

This will allow us to deliver on the Government's commitment to have 50,000 farmers participating in the flagship environmental programme under Ireland's Common Agricultural Policy, CAP, strategic plan 2023-2027.

I have provided targeted supports of more than €100 million for the livestock sectors within subheads B6 - beef sustainability schemes, and B8 - animal welfare schemes for sheep. This funding demonstrates my commitment to our beef and sheep sectors and to sheep farmers. I will continue to provide the payment of €200 per suckler cow and calf over the course of this year, as I did last year. I also intend to provide an additional payment for sheep farmers, which, together with the current sheep welfare scheme payments, will result in a payment equivalent of €20 per ewe in 2024, which is double the amount that was available in 2022. This will be the highest payment ever provided to our vital sheep sector. As we know, beef and sheep farmers will also be well placed to benefit from the enhanced supports for environmental measures and the supports available for farmers transitioning to organic farming.

The funding under the CAP strategic plan suckler carbon efficiency programme and the sheep improvement scheme will support animal health and welfare and demonstrate the importance we place on the carbon efficiency of our grass-based and quality-assured beef and lamb.

Programme C relates to policy and strategy. We have almost €425 million in the budget for the programme this year. Many of the programme C allocations reflect my Department's comprehensive approach to dealing with the challenges associated with the sustainable development of the agrifood sector. To support our food industry, for example, a provision of €8 million has been made through the Enterprise Ireland capital investment scheme to support the meat and dairy sectors to invest in greater product and market diversification. We will also support Irish research and innovation activity to enable the sector to innovate and deliver greater efficiency and economic return, as well as economic, environmental and social sustainability.

The Bord Bia grant for this year is €57 million. We know the important role it plays in respect of our food and drink exports. Critically, this funding also supports the food industry to respond to the challenges and uncertainty that have arisen in terms of markets as a result, in particular, of Brexit and Covid-19, and the very unfortunate geopolitical challenges and crises we are seeing in certain parts of the world.

The strong Exchequer support for Teagasc is going to be maintained this year, which is important. More than €6 million in additional grant aid has been made available to bring the overall support for Teagasc this year to €170 million. That comprises €112 million to pay staff salaries and pensions and €44 million to support current operational expenditure, as well as €14 million to the Teagasc capital programme.

Subhead C13 is new for this year and provides funding for Rialálaí Agraibhia, the new agrifood regulator, which was established as an independent State agency last December with the key objective of promoting fairness and transparency throughout the agrifood supply chain. We all worked hard to deliver the regulator to ensure it would protect our agrifood suppliers, in particular, our farmers, fishers and small food businesses, from unlawful trading practices. It will do that by publishing analyses of information and pricing market data over the course of the year. I look forward to that driving on over the course of this year, having been fully established before the end of last year.

Programme D is our seafood sector. Over the lifetime of this Government, €500 million has been spent on the sector. Over the past two years, I have announced a range of schemes, worth €271 million, designed to support the seafood sector in coastal communities in overcoming the impact of Brexit. In December last year, the European Commission adopted the seafood development programme, which will take us up to 2027. The 2024 provision of approximately €171 million will allow this programme to provide support for the sector over the coming years. The programme will ensure that the seafood sector will not only survive but will also generate economic growth and sustain jobs. Programme D will also provide funding to State bodies that carry out important work in the marine environment to protect our coastal resources. The measures supported here also include capital investment on board vessels, marine environmental requirements, control work and investment in aquaculture. The programme also provides funding for young fishers, processors and the inshore sector. The measures also involve the completion of the largest ever investment in piers and harbours across the State.

That is a brief overview of the measures provided to support the agrifood and marine sectors for the year ahead. As committee members are, no doubt, aware, the past three years have been about developing new policies and schemes, especially through the development and introduction of the new CAP strategic plan, worth just under €10 billion. This support and the associated programmes provide certainty for the farming sector and provide the platform to allow farmers to focus on what they do best, which we will all agree is to produce high-quality and safe food in a sustainable manner. I am satisfied that the 2024 allocation provides a good and balanced package of measures for farmers and fishers, as well as coastal communities and our food sector. I look forward to taking questions from members.