John Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)

The overall provision is €25 million for hardship and €5 million for the fund the Deputy has talked about. We are in discussions with the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Deputy Ó Cuív, to see how the €5 million scheme can be implemented. I do not believe any Deputy would support the setting up of another bureaucratic layer within my Department when CLÁR, RAPID, LEADER and other programmes operate within Deputy Ó Cuív's office. I believe we should examine how we can administer the fund through his Department.

As regards the taxation arrangements, the money can be paid over a period of three years. The Revenue Commissioners have advised that not all the hardship fund will be taxable. The part which relates to the payment of six times the value of the 2006 licence fee, for example, will not be liable to tax. There are therefore opportunities for fishermen to avail of the scheme over a three-year period, which will reduce their tax liability. As I have said, we have already held discussions with Revenue on this particular area.

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