Andrew Doyle (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This is the first opportunity I have had to address the Upper House. I am delighted to do so on a subject in which I have some interest, indeed a vested interest as a flock owner. I am very pleased also that a former colleague on the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine has raised the matter. On the committee, we proved beyond doubt that it is possible to work constructively across party and non-party lines for the betterment of the sector. I will set out the official reply which gives the broad outline. In the follow up contribution, I can discuss the flat rate and so on.

The programme for Government commits to the provision of €25 million for the support of the sheep sector in budget 2017. This provision recognises the commitment of the Government to the development of the sheepmeat sector which is an important element of the national economy. The sector generated an output value of €320 million and exports in excess of €230 million in 2015. The sector also makes a vital contribution to the economy by supporting 34,000 farm families directly as well as by providing several thousand jobs indirectly in rural areas.This commitment is also additional to the support provided through the green low-carbon agri-environment scheme, GLAS, through the areas of natural constraint scheme and through the targeted agricultural modernisation schemes, TAMS. The inclusion of a TAMS measure to support sheep fencing was recently announced. This approval, which followed lengthy discussions between the Department and the European Commission, will provide a significant boost to sheep farmers, especially young farmers who wish to commence sheep production by providing them the means to invest significantly in the necessary infrastructure for their holdings.

The supports provided through these measures are a recognition of the critical importance of the sheep sector, which makes a vital contribution to the economic viability rural areas through farming, processing and marketing as well as playing a central role in shaping the landscape, both in more intensive farming areas and in areas where more marginal land dominates. This scheme has the potential to deliver targeted support to an important sector of agriculture. It is my objective that the scheme delivers a long-term cumulative benefit to the sheep sector.

Support from the Department for the vital work of Teagasc and Sheep Ireland is critically important. Developing new and more lucrative markets is also a key challenge. In this regard, my Department works to develop market opportunities by opening new markets and supports the work of Bord Bia in the promotion of sheepmeat in domestic and EU markets. My Department has been engaged in consultations with farm bodies to inform its work on the detail of the new sheep scheme. I took note of the Senator’s point about the smaller representative organisations which have been in contact. Any such scheme will have to be approved by the European Commission under the rural development programme. It must meet the exacting requirements of the rural development regulations in compensating farmers for any actions undertaken on the basis of costs incurred or income foregone.

Furthermore, in any rural development scheme, actions taken by farmers must go beyond the normal standards of husbandry practice before they can be considered as an eligible cost incurred by a farmer. The challenge will be to develop a simple and practical scheme which makes a real contribution to the development of the sector, while meeting all of the EU requirements. There is also an obligation on us to ensure any scheme that provides for support to sheep farmers is targeted at improving on-farm practices which will have lasting and cumulative benefits to sheep farmers and the national flock.

I am also aware of the need to ensure the scheme is made available to as many sheep farmers as possible. In that context, it is important that the different systems of production of both lowland sheep farmers and hill sheep farmers are taken into account in any such scheme.

On the basis of the engagement with farm bodies to date, there is a reasonable degree of consensus that article 33 of the rural development regulation, which provides for support for animal welfare measures, is the most appropriate vehicle for supporting the sector in this instance. I am particularly anxious to ensure the scheme includes measures suitable for the differing production systems in both hill and lowland flocks.

At this stage, the Department has had an initial meeting with the European Commission and is working through the detail of the proposed scheme. The examination of the proposals by the Commission will be forensic, focusing on ensuring compliance with the relevant regulations, additionality and value for money. As a result of these discussions, departmental officials are working intensively on ensuring any scheme meets the requirements of the Commission. It is expected there will be further ongoing and detailed communication with the Commission on the scheme’s details.

The scheme will also have to be presented to the monitoring committee of Ireland’s rural development programme prior to final submission to the European Commission. My focus is on delivering a scheme which can maximise the number of participants and deliver tangible benefits to the sheep sector in its impact as regards on-farm practices. This scheme has the potential to deliver targeted support to an important sector of agriculture. It is my objective to design and implement a scheme that delivers a long-term cumulative benefit to the sheep sector. It is important the measures are tangible and give a real benefit while the scheme is kept simple as possible. The €25 million can cover a flat rate, if it is the preferred option, without having it either frontloaded or capped at €200 or €250 per head.The budget allows for it to cover all breeding sheep in the system at the moment.