Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Question 219: To ask the Minister for Agriculture and Food if she intends to pay back moneys to early retirement from farming scheme participants who were inadvertently or wrongly offset from their pension over the years; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [13755/06]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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The Department of Agriculture and Food makes deductions from the early retirement pension where a national retirement pension is being paid to the applicant, their spouse in some cases, or where penalties have been imposed for non-compliance with the conditions of the scheme. Every effort is made to ensure the correct amounts are deducted in all cases. In the small number of cases where the incorrect amount has been offset, the Department will reimburse the amount due to the applicant without delay.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Question 220: To ask the Minister for Agriculture and Food if she intends to put in place payments which will compensate early retirement from farming scheme participants who have lost rental income from lease quotas, as a result of decoupling; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [13756/06]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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There is no provision for additional payments to participants in the early retirement schemes concerning leased quotas. However, the Department of Agriculture and Food was aware from an early stage in the negotiations leading to the introduction of the single payment scheme of the possible implications for retired farmers who had leased their holdings. In so far as it proved possible in the context of the EU regulations governing the single payment scheme, and following lengthy discussions with the European Commission, provision was made under the rules of the single payment scheme to address some of the concerns of retired farmers.

As participants in the 1994 scheme of early retirement from farming had retired before the start of the reference period in 2000, they are not in a position to claim entitlements under the single payment scheme.

However, following agreement with the European Commission, a special category has been included in the national reserve for farmers who inherit or otherwise receive land free of charge or for a nominal sum from a farmer who retired or died before 16 May 2005, where the land in question was leased to a third party during the reference period. This will benefit the family members of retired farmers who decide to take up farming. Only landholders actively engaged in farming can receive entitlements from the national reserve. A separate category, category A, was included in the 2005 national reserve application form to cater for this group. Similar arrangements will apply under the 2006 and subsequent years' national reserve.

It was open to participants in the current early retirement scheme, who would have farmed during part or all of the reference period, to activate entitlements in 2005 and lease them to their existing transferee. If the transferee did not want the entitlements, a transferor, retired farmer, who activated the entitlements in 2005 has until 2007 either to lease the entitlements or transfer them, with land, to another farmer.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Question 221: To ask the Minister for Agriculture and Food if she will increase the pension payable under the early retirement scheme to the maximum where applicable as permitted under the terms of CAP reform; if such increase will be given to all participants in the scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [13757/06]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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The rate of pension payable under the 1994 scheme of early retirement from farming is the maximum amount of €12,075 per annum provided for by the EU council regulation under which the scheme was introduced. The maximum payable under the regulation governing the 2000 scheme of early retirement from farming is €15,000 per annum. At the time the scheme was introduced the Department of Agriculture and Food had sought approval to have scaled payments, but this was rejected by the European Commission and a set rate of €13,515 per annum was agreed upon. Any change to this rate would require an amendment to the CAP rural development plan 2000-2006.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Question 222: To ask the Minister for Agriculture and Food the number of early retirement from farming scheme participants to date who have drawn down the full €127,000; the percentage of the early retirement from farming scheme participants to which this would apply; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [13758/06]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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Under the 1994 scheme of early retirement from farming a total of 10,664 applications were approved for payment; of these 6,294 cases, or 59.02% of the total, received the maximum rate of pension of €12,075 per annum. Under the early retirement, ERS2, 2000 scheme 2,741 applications have been approved for payment to date; of these 1,650, or 60.19%, qualified for the maximum rate of pension of €13,515 per annum. The maximum duration of an early retirement pension is ten years, subject to age limits.