Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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1. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of farmers who have received letters regarding over-claims under the single farm payment scheme and other schemes for 2013 due to the EU ordered review of all claims for the past five years; the number of cases examined to date; the number of cases still to be examined; the amount of money being sought back from farmers to date for previous years; the number of 2013 payments held up pending the review of claimed area; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48460/13]

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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Many farmers are receiving letters from the Minister looking for payments back over five years. Many are wondering whether those letters will drop in the post some day. Some of them are for hectarages of 0.01, 0.02 or 0.03 hectares. This is a matter of great concern and the penalties in some cases are disproportionate. I mentioned a case to the Minister which involved an equivalent penalty of €12,000 per hectare. We need to see the end of this matter.

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy will be fully aware of the importance of payments made under the single payment scheme, the disadvantaged areas scheme and other direct payment schemes to the annual income of farmers. To date, my Department has paid €582 million in advance payments to more than 115,143 farmers under the 2013 single payment scheme since payments commenced on 16 October. Some 84,800 farmers have received just under €180 million under the 2013 disadvantaged areas scheme. Payments continue to issue under both schemes as cases become clear and eligible for payment. I reassure farmers that no payments are held up due to the ongoing LPIS review.

Department officials met the Commission in July of this year about possible disallowances and, in response, my Department is reviewing all land parcels claimed. This means in effect a review of all 950,000 land parcels. This is a mammoth task but my Department is making every effort to ensure it will be completed in a manner that satisfies the Commission and avoids significant disallowances for Ireland. As a result of this phase of this review, any payments made to farmers in respect of claimed areas which were found to be ineligible must be reimbursed. That is for 2013. No decisions have yet been made in respect of retrospection and there is no detail regarding that in the letters that have gone out to farmers. The review of the 950,000 parcels contained in the LPIS database is well advanced at this stage, with more than half the parcels reviewed, and it is on target to be finalised in time to allow a comprehensive response to the Commission which is required by 15 December.

To date, 19,418 over-claim letters have issued to farmers, together with maps of the land parcels in question. It should be borne in mind that for 75% of farmers, the over-claim will have no impact on payment as many farmers declare more land than payment entitlements, and a further 18% of farmers have a minimal payment reduction. The average over-claim is less that €90 or just over €300 for those applicants with a reduction and penalty. These figures are based on 2013 payments only.

Additional information not given on the floor of the House

In the letters issued to date there is considerable detail and maps to advise of the particular over-claims. Farmers are also informed of the appeals process should they disagree with my Department's findings. The appeals process I have introduced is robust and comprehensive. In the first instance, applicants are entitled to have their case reviewed by submitting their appeal on the form provided by my Department. If they are not satisfied with the outcome of the review, they can appeal their case to the independently chaired land eligibility appeals committee, details of which I announced recently. This committee will consist of an independent chairman and appeals officers from the Agriculture Appeals Office.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister said that no farmer had received a letter detailing a fine. I have two comments to make. I can produce-----

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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They are not fines.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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It is a disallowance or a penalty or whatever one wants to call it.

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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It is not a penalty. It is a reimbursement of money that should not have been paid out. The Deputy should not heighten an already difficult situation for many farmers.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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I know I have only one minute but I am entitled to ask the question without interruption. The second thing is that when farmers get the letters at the moment, there is a general sheet outlining the penalty regime, but they are not told specifically what the penalty is in their case. Can the Minister tell me why this is the case?

Why is it that at the end of October, despite the guff about all the money the Minister has spent, the Department is €96 million behind profile in spend? In other words, €96 million that the Minister had programmed to send to farmers has not yet been paid. Can he explain the reason for this €96 million underspend by his Department at the end of October against what was expected at the beginning of the year? It is outrageous.

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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It is not outrageous and I will explain why.

On the initial question, this is not penalties for farmers. It is about reimbursement of money that was drawn down on land that was ineligible for payments. We are legally required to collect that money. Unfortunately, we have had, and we continue to have, many corrections in the mapping system which is the basis for farmers' claims of their payments. Let us be very clear about what happens if we do not do this. We know what will happen because the Commission has imposed fines on other countries that have not responded satisfactorily to this. The Commission calculates the level of overpayment, multiplies that figure by five and applies that disallowance or fine to Ireland. Much bigger and more politically influential countries in Europe have had massive fines imposed on them, such as the UK, France and Italy. I am seeking to avoid that eventuality because it will mean we would have to take that disallowance from the budget we have to spend on farms.

On the €96 million-----

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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I must be fair to both sides, Minister. You must conclude. I am in a very sticky position.

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy knows well what the answer is about the €96 million. That money will be spent before the end of the year.

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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I will come back to the Minister after the Deputy asks a supplementary question.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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Perhaps the Minister will explain something. There is a disallowance due to errors that were made, minor errors in many cases, in the last four or five years. Some of these are as small as 0.01%, 0.02% and 0.03%, but when small farms are involved there is a disproportionate penalty.

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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There is no penalty involved.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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Why are the farmers bearing the brunt of this mess? Second, can the Minister explain why there is €100 million in the coffers of the Department which should be in farmers' pockets to allow them to pay the people to whom they owe money?

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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I will respond to the second question because the Deputy is deliberately trying to cause trouble. He understands exactly what the situation is in the Department, having previously been a Minister. A huge portion of our payments are made in the last third of the year. This year, the date for the budget was brought forward significantly, but we will spend the Department's allocation for the full 12 months that was made in last year's Estimates for this year. There was a €96 million underspend at the time of the budget, but that money will be spent.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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The underspend is at the end of the month of September. The Minister is holding money back.

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy should let me answer the question. He knows the answer but he is trying to be deliberately mischievous.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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I am not. I am being factual.

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy should judge my Department on whether it has an underspend at the end of the year. We are budgeting for the year and there will not be a significant underspend at the end of it.