Results 15,321-15,340 of 18,645 for speaker:Brendan Smith

Dairy Sector. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: I met Commissioner Fischer Boel in Brussels on 11 March to discuss the dairy situation and explore the options open to us to restore market confidence. In particular, I had two main issues to press her on. The first was the requirement to continue to buy butter into intervention at prices close to the fixed price level. The second was to stress the need to export larger quantities of...

Dairy Sector. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: Some member states raised the possibility of revisiting the Health Check of the Common Agricultural Policy. I vehemently oppose such proposals. Last week I travelled to Germany to meet the German Minister. Germany has strongly advocated additional support for the dairy sector. However, it also favours revisiting the Health Check. As I said, we strongly oppose that proposal. During the...

Dairy Sector. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: There is a provision in the Health Check for a review of its measures in 2010. Some member states have proposed that this review be brought forward to 2009. As I said, I do not support this proposal. We must be careful not to send out a message that Europe is chopping and changing policy. That would lead to instability. We must look to the situation of the processor or individual farmer...

Farm Waste Management. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: The arrangements for payment of grants under the farm waste management scheme on a phased basis have been confirmed, with 40% being paid this year as claims are approved. A further 40% will be paid in early January 2010 and the remaining 20% in January 2011. I have also announced that a special ex gratia payment not exceeding 3.5% of the value of the deferred amount will be made to farmers...

Farm Waste Management. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: Provision will be made in the Revised Estimates to meet the commitments we have given to those farmers who are due grant payments under the farm waste management scheme. So far this year, of the 40% to be paid, almost €66 million has issued to almost 5,000 farmers. Departmental officials at local level are carrying out inspections as expeditiously as possible in order to ensure that...

Farm Waste Management. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: This represents the largest infrastructural investment ever made——

Farm Waste Management. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: The Deputy should be interested——

Farm Waste Management. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: This is the largest infrastructural investment ever made in on-farm facilities. It is funded entirely by the Exchequer. Grant aid of 70% in some areas and 60% in others was provided.

Farm Waste Management. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: Moreover, the maximum eligible investment ceiling was increased and the scheme was extended to include other sectors previously denied access to on-farm investment schemes. I assure Deputy Creed that the 40% payment to all eligible applicants will be made in the course of this year.

Farm Waste Management. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: The question asked when people would be paid and if funding would be made available. I want to assure the Deputy as I have done previously that provision is being made to ensure that the 40% element of all eligible grant applications will be made during the early part of this year. Inspections are being expedited as rapidly as possible.

Farm Waste Management. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: I already mentioned to the Deputy that almost €66 million was paid out during the first two and a half months of this year.

Farm Waste Management. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: As the Deputy is well aware this is an Exchequer-funded scheme and the Minister for Finance provides the funding to the relevant Department to meet obligations under different schemes. We will not be getting the money from Europe but from our own Exchequer.

Common Agricultural Policy. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: I announced yesterday that unused funds available in 2009 from the single farm payment national reserve would be paid to hill sheep farmers in the form of an uplands sheep payment. The amount in question is approximately €7 million in 2009. These funds have become available as a result of a request by me, supported by a number of my counterparts from other European Union member states, in...

Common Agricultural Policy. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: The only funding available within unused funds that we can access during 2009 comes from the national reserve fund, which amounts to €7 million.

Common Agricultural Policy. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: When we succeeded last year in getting the European Commission to give approval in principle to member states having access to unused funds — we sought to have access to all the unused funds for 2009 — that was not agreed at European Union level. The only funding to which we have access is the €7 million. I was conscious that it is a relatively small amount of money. We wanted to...

Common Agricultural Policy. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: We were anxious to allocate this money on the basis of ensuring that there was the smallest possible administrative cost. There is practically no cost — it is only a matter of changing the application form that goes out to each single-payment applicant. I do not know whether the industry is interested in going along the French route. The French took a linear cut from the single payment...

Common Agricultural Policy. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: The Deputy may not have had a chance to read my press release of yesterday. In the final paragraph I indicated that all sectors would be eligible for consideration for the unused funds. In particular I mentioned that mountain and lowland sheep production would be eligible for consideration under the unused and modulation funds. As I said earlier we do not have the details of the scheme or...

Common Agricultural Policy. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: No. The French have done it under Article 68 with a linear cut and it is not from the unused funds. It is slightly different. I know it is confusing. I just want to emphasise that we have not yet got the specifics of what programmes will be eligible for consideration under the unused funds.

Common Agricultural Policy. (24 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: Earlier I referred to the statement I issued in announcing this. If the Deputy has an opportunity to read the final paragraph he will see there was a clear message.

Written Answers — Grant Payments: Grant Payments (12 Mar 2009)

Brendan Smith: An application under the Single Payment Scheme/Disadvantaged Areas' Scheme was received from the person named on the 15th May 2008. This application was selected for a ground eligibility and cross compliance inspection. During the inspection discrepancies were found in relation to parcels Y16520034, Y16520056, Y16520022, Y16520023, Y16520025, Y17001029, Y17002018, Y17002037, Y17107024 and...