Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fine Gael)

I accept the point made by the Minister of State that there may be legitimate reasons that someone could not activate them in any of the three years. After the Department goes through this subsequent process and a fund of between €4 million and €5 million, as is probable at this stage, is still left there, this money should be ring-fenced for hardship cases.

A young farmer who applied under the national reserve was given the princely sum of €6.58 per entitlement. This young farmer has spent a significant amount of money on reclamation and this is his entitlement, which is virtually worthless, particularly when indexation is taken into account. Where genuine cases of hardship and cases where people have got a raw deal exist, will the Minister consider ring-fencing those moneys to help give those people a decent single farm payment?

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