Denis Naughten (Longford-Roscommon, Fine Gael)
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Question 17: To ask the Minister for Agriculture and Food her response to the EU petitions committee report on the EU early retirement scheme; the steps she is taking to address the issues raised; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8532/07]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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A group representing retired farmers lodged a petition with the European Parliament Committee on Petitions in May 2003, alleging that Ireland had not implemented correctly the Council Regulations governing the 1994 and 2000 Schemes of Early Retirement from Farming. The Committee requested information from the European Commission. In reply, the Commission made it clear that in its considered opinion there was no question of any infringement having been committed by Ireland in the implementation of the Schemes.

The Chairman of the European Parliament Committee on Petitions, subsequently acknowledging the view that the Commission had taken, raised these issues with me.

A reply to the Chairman of the Petitions Committee is being prepared and will issue shortly. Most of the issues raised in his letter were also dealt with in the Report of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture and Food. Certain of the Joint Committee's recommendations are precluded by the EU Regulations under which the current Scheme and its predecessor are operated. I saw some merit in other aspects of the Committee's report, specifically those relating to income limits and in line with the Joint Committee's recommendations I increased the off-farm income limit for transferees in the Scheme from €25,400 to €40,000 and abolished the income limit for transferors with effect from 1 September 2006. Other recommendations in the Committee's report will be considered in the context of the proposal for a new Early Retirement Scheme, which has been included in the draft Rural Development Programme for the period 2007–2013.

The Committee paid particular attention to two issues: the rate of pension, and the implications of decoupling for retired farmers who had leased out land and quota to transferees before or during the Single Payment Scheme reference period.

As regards decoupling, I believe we secured the best deal that we could for people in this situation, in spite of the reluctance of the Commission at the outset. A specific mandatory category was included in the National Reserve arrangements under the Single Payment Scheme. This category caters for farmers who inherited or otherwise received a holding free of charge or for a nominal amount from a farmer who retired or died before 16 May 2005 where the land in question was leased out to a third party during the reference period. Under these arrangements, where a farm reverts to the retired farmer at the end of a lease without any entitlements, the farmer taking it over will have access to the National Reserve. Retired farmers in the Early Retirement Scheme who farmed during part or all of the reference period and who held Single Payment entitlements could activate entitlements and lease them to their transferees. If the transferee did not wish to use the entitlements, a transferor has until 2007 to lease the entitlements with land to another farmer. Once at least 80% of the entitlements have been used by the lessee, the transferor has the option to sell the entitlements with or without land; otherwise he can continue to lease the entitlements with land.

Following clarification from the European Commission, I announced increases in the rate of pension under both Schemes in November last. These increases, which are financed entirely from the National Exchequer, will cost some €33 million extra over the remaining period of the two Schemes, and some 5,000 retired farmers will benefit from them.