Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein)
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50. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will provide an update on the plan to provide supports to the forgotten farmers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25141/23]

Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein)
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I want to acknowledge the Minister's commitment to finding a solution for the cohort known as the forgotten farmers. The scheme the Minister is looking at and what he will propose for this cohort of young farmers have been awaited for quite some time. Can the Minister provide us with an update on the proposal he is looking at?

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. As she knows, I have long supported the cohort of farmers known as the forgotten farmers and I have committed to supporting those farmers who find themselves in this situation, through no fault of their own in many cases, and I have committed to addressing this issue. We are working on a tailored support package for these farmers and I want to conclude the process as soon as possible. My Department has developed a preliminary outline of a proposal to provide support to the forgotten farmer group. There are a number of issues to be addressed, for example, the funding required and consistency with public expenditure, before the details of the eligibility requirements and benefits to successful applicants under a scheme can be finalised. Details of the scheme will be made available as soon as this process has been completed.

I am committed to delivering for these farmers, many of whom find themselves in this situation through no fault of their own. It is an important issue. Many of these farmers have missed out on supports that were available to others and we want to ensure they can keep farming. As Minister, I want to ensure that it is recognised that they missed out on those supports. It is a tricky issue to navigate and it is tricky to find an overall package that will deal with it. It is also being done in the context of all the other schemes being rolled out this year and the work that is ongoing with that. The commitment is there that we will resolve the issue. It is an issue that has been going on for many years but farmers can rest assured that we will deal with it and that we are working our way through it.

Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein)
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I thank the Minister for his response. We have been hearing for some time, particularly towards the end of last year, that the package was coming and that detailed information was coming, and that commitment has been made several times. We were to get further detail in the first quarter of this year and that time has come and gone. Can the Minister give these farmers any commitment on a timeframe for this, given how long they have waited already and given that in the media the proposals the Minister is looking at have been half put out there and half not? There is an awful lot of uncertainty for this cohort of farmers and they have been left in a vulnerable position. I imagine many of them have left farming or are considering their futures, given the pressure they have been put under and the fact that they cannot wait forever for this scheme. Given that the basic income support for sustainability scheme is about to close in a matter of days, can the Minister give us any idea whether we are looking at the period before recess or if we are looking towards the end of the year? Can the Minister give any indication to these farmers who are still waiting?

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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I will be having a meeting with the team in my Department shortly for a full update on all of the work I have asked them to do and to progress. The same team has been working on rolling out all of the various new schemes which are opening week-on-week. I have sought to give as much certainty as possible to those farmers in the forgotten farmer category that this will happen but I have also made it clear that it will take time and that it cannot happen quickly. It will be a number of more months but I want to progress it as quickly as I can. I will be meeting my team shortly to sit down and go through exactly how far they have come and how we can step it out in the best timeframe possible. That is being done alongside the various schemes being rolled out and the significant pressure there is this year.

I can give certainty to the forgotten farmers that this is being dealt with and that we are committed to dealing with it. It is something that has been in play for 15 years but it will take a bit more time to do it. I will come back with further clarification on that once I have sat down with the team again to review the work that has been carried out. A lot of work has been required to pull it all together and to assess the different profiles of farmers who are affected. I will give as much clarity at that point on how we can step it out from here.

Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein)
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Can the Minister give us a little bit more information on the work that is under way by the Department at the Minister's request? Is there a proposal from the Department on the table which outlines what this scheme might look like? The Minister has mentioned eligibility, and it is critically important that we get that element of it right. Is there engagement with farm organisations or others on what the scheme might look like before it will be entirely rolled out? Is that something the Minister is looking at?

On clarification for these farmers, will they be able to access the new young farmers scheme and the national reserve? Those questions are being asked as well. As much clarity as possible is important for this cohort of farmers, given that they have waited and are still waiting for far too long. I know the Minister would share that view. This matter needs to be dealt with as quickly as possible. If it will be a number of months then at least the Minister can give them that bit of clarity but they need some timeframe on their futures. That is only fair.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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We have received submissions from the various farming organisations on this issue and on how they feel it should be addressed. The various options and ways forward are being looked at by my officials so we do not have full clarity on that yet because a range of options are being looked at. As soon as I have that clarity I will bring it but there has been engagement and we have gathered information from farm representatives on their views on the issue and how best we could address it.