Seymour Crawford (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)

I appreciate that the REP scheme is beneficial. It certainly has helped where the position of farm incomes has been serious. How are the regulations implemented because some farmers are visited by inspectors and are excluded from the scheme for minor issues that have no real bearing on the farming structure?

Recently I came across a case which was serious from the point of view of the family concerned. The man's health has broken down, he failed to meet the REPS regulations and he is getting no payment whatsoever. All payments are stopped because the REPS payments must be recovered before anything else is done.

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