Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Canney for raising what is an important point. The areas of natural constraint, ANC, scheme is one of the most important supports for farmers. It helps to support and sustain agriculture in all four corners of Ireland and in the constituency the Deputy represents, as I am sure he is well aware. Those benefits trickle down to farmers' local communities as well. As a Department, we work closely with farmers to ensure they maximise all available payments for their farm.

It must be noted that CAP payments, including those made under the areas of natural constraint or ANC scheme, are governed by EU regulations and are subject to rigorous audit and are controlled by the European Commission. The mandatory use of online application was introduced in 2018. The online application process in Ireland has been streamlined over many years to ensure quick, efficient, and responsive processing and prompt payment to farmers. The application process is reviewed annually to make it is as clear and straightforward as possible. Every effort is made by the Department to improve the quality of applications with the aim of lowering errors and allowing payments to issue in good time.

The "no change" option was introduced following years of experience and consultation with farmer representative organisations. The wording was settled on to avoid farmers mistakenly not applying for the ANC scheme. Farmers cannot proceed with their application unless they declare they are either applying or not applying for the ANC scheme. It is an EU requirement that farmers must make a declaration they are applying for the scheme and that they will comply with the terms and conditions, and that is at the nub of this and why we have to have farmers tick that box. If applicants do not tick the box to apply for the ANC scheme initially and if they have received a payment under the scheme in previous years, they are presented with an additional pop-up warning on screen under the heading “Do you wish to apply for ANC?”. This warning advises applicants that they had received ANC payments in previous scheme years and requests them to select from one of two options, either to apply or not to apply for the ANC scheme.

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