Dan Neville (Limerick West, Fine Gael)
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Question 1057: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the case of a person (details supplied ) in County Limerick. [33667/09]

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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REPS 3 was a measure introduced under the Rural Development Programme for Ireland 2000 — 2006. Under Supplementary Measure 6 of REPS 3, it was possible for a farmer to receive an organic payment in addition to his basic REPS payment. A new stand alone Organic Farming Scheme was introduced under the Organic Farming Measure of the Rural Development Programme for Ireland 2007 — 2013. Under this programme, the EU ruled that in order for a farmer to avail of the Organic Farming Scheme if they were in either REPS 2 or REPS 3, they had to transform to REPS 4. The EU decided that a situation was not allowed whereby a farmer could be in REPS 3 under one rural development programme and in the Organic Farming Scheme under another. It is therefore not possible for the person named to join the Organic Farming Scheme while still holding REPS 3 commitments. The person named ceases his commitments in REPS 3 on 30th November 2010 and would be allowed join the Organic Farming Scheme at that stage if the Scheme is still in operation.

The Organic Farming Scheme is currently suspended. My colleague, Mr. Trevor Sargent TD, Minister for Food and Horticulture, Fisheries and Food recently announced the outcome of the review of the Scheme, under which support is paid to farmers in the sector. It is the Department's intention, subject to the outcome of the estimates process, to re-open the Organic Farming Scheme from 1 January, 2010 with revised scheme conditions. The amount of funding available for the Organic Farming Scheme will be determined later in the year when the Government are preparing the estimates for 2010.