Frank Feighan (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy McConalogue, and I are ardent supporters of generational renewal and the need to support and encourage young farmers as a way of ensuring we have the best and brightest in the sector. As outlined by the Tánaiste in the Dáil last week, people are entitled to their opinions and to write whatever letters they see fit but I and the Minister want to assure all farmers that Government policy is to support them in investing in their businesses to make them more economically and environmentally sustainable. The Minister was once a young farmer and he knows how important access to credit is and farming is an exciting career option for so many. We want to do all we can to encourage people into the sector. In Boyle I have been a businessman and understood how important the farming sector was to my business and town as well.

The challenge of generational renewal is widely recognised both at national and EU level, with the new CAP citing it as one of its nine key objectives. Our own Food Vision 2030 also highlights the challenge and proposes a number of actions, including maintaining the strong level of current support, the promotion of land mobility and succession planning, and increased education. This reflects the need to ensure a vibrant agriculture sector equipped with skilled and innovative young farmers to respond to societal demands for quality food and environmental public goods.

There is a range of measures both in the existing CAP and at national level that support younger farmers. There is the young farmers scheme, with payments of €110 million benefitting over 8,000 farmers each year, and the national reserve, with €35 million allocated since 2015, providing financial support to young farmers during the crucial early years of setting up a farm enterprise. Additionally, under the targeted agricultural modernisation schemes, TAMS, Il young farmer capital investment scheme, young farmers can avail of a 60% grant rate and over €133 million has been paid to over 5,000 farmers to date. Support to young farmers is also provided under the collaborative farming grant scheme. These partnership structures are further supported through the availability of a tax credit at national level to assist with the transfer of farms within succession farm partnerships, promoting and supporting the earlier transfer of family farms.

In addition, strong taxation measures assist land mobility and facilitate succession and are worth approximately €200 million to the sector per annum. Long-term leasing income tax relief has been an important driver of land mobility by providing access to land and security of tenure for younger farmers and a route to retirement for older farmers.

In terms of the new CAP strategic plan, CSP, the Minister has been actively engaging with stakeholders throughout the process of developing the new plan. Under the current CSP proposals, Ireland will continue to implement the young farmers scheme with an increased allocation of approximately €35 million per year to help young farmers establish their farming business. Qualifying young farmers will be paid on a per hectare basis, which will be more advantageous to young farmers than the current system, which was linked to payment entitlements. In tandem with this, we will also implement the national reserve in each year of the new CAP, along with maintaining a higher grant rate for qualified young farmers. The CSP will also continue to provide support for collaborative farming and will propose innovative ways to advise older farmers on succession and retirement options, which will increase the availability of land for younger farmers.

Access to finance is a crucial business need and as well as liaising with the main banks on issues relating to the agrifood sector, we work closely across government to provide important supports for businesses, including farmers. Most recently this has been to ensure that they have access to finance during the pandemic and also to help deal with the challenges brought about by Brexit. These supports have been delivered with the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland, SBCI. The future growth loan scheme was developed with assisting young farmers among its primary objectives and has been in great demand, with 1,296 loans to the value of €156 million sanctioned to farmers.