Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I will acknowledge that this is an anomaly that was around long before the Minister was in office. It is disgraceful that his predecessors did not resolve it. I acknowledge again that he has committed to resolving it, but for the farmers who are affected, he has yet to do so. I know that he has made statements on the issue in public, but we do not have the necessary clarity. There was no announcement in budget 2022 about how this scheme will be funded, yet, in January, just a couple of months later, the Minister leaked to the media that these farmers would receive up to €5,000 in a lump sum, as well as enhanced targeted agriculture modernisation scheme, TAMS, payments. There was not an announcement though in this year's budget either, but now we have public criteria. The Minister suggested that he is in negotiations with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. How much has he sought for the scheme? How much does he envisage that it will be worth to these young farmers who have been disenfranchised for so long?

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