Seán Kyne (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

She was there and I am sure she spoke glowingly of me, as always. I am sorry I missed the meeting, but I contacted a few people who were at it. There has been some concern about this matter. As the meeting broke up at 11.30 p.m., it was time to go home at that stage. Having spoken to planners and farmers, I note there is some concern about the Westport meeting and what was agreed and is now agreed. The most important point is that we get farmers into GLAS in order that they will be paid. The commencement date is early and there is still concern about the management plans. In fairness to the IFA, with which I have been dealing, it has come a long way. Before the summer recess, when we were having debates on GLAS, the position was to have no collective agreement under any circumstance. In the interim, it has moved towards stating it will accept that it can implement collective agreements on getting farmers into GLAS but that there must be a proper lead-in period.

Some of the planners to whom I spoke after their meeting in Westport on Tuesday expressed concerns about the implementation of the scheme and about the number of planners available. Following the meeting in Westport in August, people understood they could apply as an individual, but that over the course of the year they could give an assurance that they would comply with a combined management plan for the commonage. This seems to be the sticking point now. They feel that according to Department officials, this is not the situation and that they must now be included in the commonage management plan first. People also feel they need a lead from the Department in terms of naming a planner for each commonage or getting the Department to draw up the plan for the commonage.

As the Minister said, it would not require significant work to get agreement from farmers on who the planner might be. They have been dealing with different planners over the years which would make it difficult for them to decide on one planner. Perhaps, therefore, the Department could have a role in that. The main concern is the difficulty that exists for commonage farmers who want and need to be part of the scheme to become part of it. I hope the issues relating to GLAS can be ironed out shortly.

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