John O'Mahony (Mayo, Fine Gael)

I would like to ask a few questions to follow up on that. Can the Minister guarantee that a scheme will be opened up next year to those who are exiting REPS 3 on this year's payments? According to the four year plan, €35.7 million will be saved in this area next year. Does that figure relate to the 10,000 people who are exiting the various schemes? Can the Minister explain the figure? As I was not here for the previous answer, the Minister may have said that the figures will be confirmed in next week's budget. If the Minister is saying he cannot confirm that a scheme will be opened up, will he be able to do so next week? I ask because farmers who are going to the banks for funding - we know how popular the banks are at the moment - are being asked to provide credit guarantees. They need to know what the Government's plans are.

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