Ned O'Keeffe (Cork East, Fianna Fail)
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Question 196: To ask the Minister for Agriculture and Food when payment of the EU single farm payment will issue to a person (details supplied) in County Cork. [6125/06]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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The person named submitted an application under the single payment scheme on 11 May 2005. The herd owner also applied to have her entitlements consolidated under the 2005 single payment consolidation measure. Her application has been processed and payment will issue shortly.

Ned O'Keeffe (Cork East, Fianna Fail)
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Question 197: To ask the Minister for Agriculture and Food when payment of the EU single farm payment will issue to a person (details supplied) in County Cork. [6126/06]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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As there is no record of the receipt of an application form from the person named under the 2005 single payment scheme, an official of my Department has been in direct contact with the person named in an attempt to clarify matters.

Pádraic McCormack (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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Question 198: To ask the Minister for Agriculture and Food if, regarding a person (details supplied) in County Galway, she will make a statement on the cutback by more than 50% in this person's area aid application; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6137/06]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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The person named submitted an application under the single payment scheme on 13 May 2005 and also applied to have his entitlements consolidated under the scheme. The EU provisions governing the consolidation of entitlements provide that an applicant must declare a number of eligible hectares amounting to 50% or more of the entitlements granted to him.

The person named has established 121.46 single payment entitlements to the value of €9,671.86 and declared a total forage area of 41.67 hectares on his 2005 single payment application. Having processed the application for the consolidation of entitlements, the person named was notified by my Department that his application was unsuccessful as the eligible hectares declared on his 2005 single payment application were less than 50% of his entitlements.

He may re-apply for consolidation of entitlements under the 2006 single payment scheme, provided he declares a number of eligible hectares equivalent to 50% or more of the number of entitlements he currently holds. Payment in respect of 41.67 single payment entitlements amounting to €3,272.39 issued to the person named on 13 January 2006.

Gerard Murphy (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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Question 200: To ask the Minister for Agriculture and Food the entitlements which will be awarded to a person (details supplied) in County Cork; her plans to rectify the matter; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6164/06]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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The EU regulations governing the single payment scheme make specific provision for farmers who were obliged, because of agri-environmental undertakings such as REPS and commonage framework plans, to reduce their stock numbers. Such farmers are entitled to apply to my Department to have their single payment entitlements calculated on the period before they de-stocked.

It is noted that the person named joined REPS in 1997. Due to the requirements of the scheme, he needed to construct a slatted unit for his dairy enterprise. In order to provide full slurry storage capacity for all his stock he was then advised that he needed to provide a further slatted unit for his suckler enterprise. The person named decided to sell his suckler enterprise, including his suckler quota, and concentrate on his dairy enterprise which he increased from approximately 14,500 gallons to more than 33,000 gallons. Such changes of enterprise are deemed to be a management decision and do not fall to be reviewed under agri-environmental provisions.

Gerard Murphy (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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Question 201: To ask the Minister for Agriculture and Food if a person (details supplied) in County Cork has entitlements under provisions of the national reserve; if so, the amount of same; if their application for payment under [i]force majeure[/i] will be reviewed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6165/06]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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The person named submitted an application on 29 October 2004 for consideration of his circumstances under the second tranche of the force majeure-exceptional circumstances measure of the single payment scheme. Having assessed the application, the single payment entitlements unit informed the person named that the circumstances outlined did not fulfil the force majeure criteria laid down in Article 40 of Council Regulation (EC) No. 1782/2003. The person named then appealed this decision to the independent single payment appeals committee which recommended that the decision of the single payment entitlements unit should be upheld.

As the person named changed his farming system during 2002, and as there is no provision under the single farm payment regulation to use 2003 and-or 2004 as an alternative reference period, the person named was advised to submit an application to the national reserve. The person named submitted an application for an allocation of entitlements from the single payments scheme national reserve under category C. Category C caters for farmers who, between 1 January 2000 and 19 October 2003, sold the milk quota into the milk quota restructuring scheme and converted their enterprise to a farming sector for which a direct payment under livestock premia or arable aid schemes would have been payable during the reference period 2000 to 2002.

More than 23,000 applications for an allocation of entitlements from the national reserve were received, when account is taken of farmers who applied under more than one category. Processing of these applications is continuing and the intention is to make allocations to successful applicants at the earliest opportunity. The Department of Agriculture and Food will be in touch with individual applicants as soon as their applications are fully processed when formal letters setting out my Department's decision will be issued.