Dan Neville (Limerick West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 310: To ask the Minister for Agriculture and Food if a suckler cow quota will be made available to a person (details supplied) in County Limerick. [23087/05]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

The single payment scheme was introduced in Ireland with effect from 1 January 2005 and all quotas including suckler cow quotas have been abolished since that date. The person named did not submit an application to the 2004 suckler cow quota national reserve.

The person named submitted an application for an allocation of entitlements from the single payment scheme national reserve under category B, which caters for farmers who, between 1 January 2000 and 19 October 2003, made an investment in production capacity in a farming sector for which a direct payment under livestock premia and/or arable aid schemes would have been payable during the reference period 2000 to 2002.

The person named applied to the reserve on the basis that he purchased land. He was, therefore, obliged to submit with his national reserve application a copy of the deed of transfer in respect of the land he purchased. He stated in his letter, which accompanied his application, that he would send proof of the purchase of the holding as soon as possible. There is no record in my Department of the deed of transfer having been received.

In excess of 17,300 applications have been received under the national reserve at my Department's office in Castlebar and are being processed at present. In view of the number of applications received and the documentation submitted, it will be some time before a decision is reached on whether the person named is entitled to an allocation from the reserve. However, a decision on his case cannot be made until such time as he submits the necessary documentation to support his claim.