Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The introduction of a specific coupled payment for suckler cows from pillar 1 funding would involve a redistribution of funds allocated to farmers under pillar 1. This would necessitate a linear cut across payment to all basic payment scheme beneficiaries.  The annual cost of such a measure would exceed €200 million.

Ireland has supported the greater market orientation of the CAP over recent reforms, including the decoupling of payments from production. This has provided farmers a measure of income stability from the basic payments scheme while allowing them to adjust production in response to  market demand.

The beef data and genomics programme is the current main support to the suckler sector and provides farmers with some €300 million of funding over the next six  years. The programme builds on the substantial investment in data recording and genomics which has been made in recent years and will continue to drive further developments and improvements in this area.

The programme was agreed with the European Commission as part of Ireland’s rural development plan for 2014 to 2020 alongside a number of other schemes such as areas of natural constraints scheme, GLAS and TAMS, which also benefit suckler farmers. I am conscious of the positive effect that the programme is having on the Irish suckler herd. It will help to improve productivity, profitability and carbon efficiency in the national herd.

The programme provides support to enable suckler farmers to improve efficiency and profitability by improving the overall genetic merit of their beef herd. I firmly believe that the scheme will deliver tangible long-term and cumulative positive effects for both suckler farmers participating in the scheme and for farmers who buy the progeny of suckler cows for further finishing. It is also a significant contributor to Ireland’s well-established reputation as a producer of sustainable, high-quality beef.

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On a possible re-opening of the scheme, this is being considered in the context of an assessment of budgetary priorities, the operation of the rural development programme and the potential impact on the scheme and other schemes. It should also be noted that support under rural development programme schemes can only be provided on the basis of costs incurred or income forgone.  Even if it were possible to reallocate resources from within the programme, any increase in the level of payment to participants in the beef data and genomics programme would require the Department to submit an amendment of the rural development programme to the European Commission and an evaluation and approval by the relevant directorates general.

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Even if a revised scheme were approved, any increase in the level of payment would inevitably result in additional actions being required to be carried out by farmers.

The Department will continue to keep expenditure under the rural development programme under review on an ongoing basis. As with all such programmes, there are inevitably issues of timing around the scheduling of payments.  Savings in one year do not necessarily imply savings over the lifetime of the programme.

The provision of support for the suckler sector is critically important.  The range of supports as currently configured represents a balance between direct income support for the sector and rural development measures designed to improve its competitiveness and sustainability. It is entirely appropriate to maintain this balance of developmental and income supports into the future.

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