Written answers

Tuesday, 6 July 2010

Department of Agriculture and Food

Disadvantaged Areas Scheme

10:00 am

Photo of Seán SherlockSeán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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Question 603: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will provide an update on the disadvantaged area review; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30123/10]

Photo of Brendan SmithBrendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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As the Deputy is aware, the EU Court of Auditors raised concerns about the procedures for the designation of intermediate Disadvantaged Areas (also known as Less Favoured Areas) in the European Union. The concerns related to the number and variety of criteria used to designate such areas - Member States have used more than one hundred criteria - and the lack of transparency.

The EU Commission has made a number of attempts to address these criticisms. During 2004/2005, the Commission proposed these areas be designated using criteria based on area classification, reflecting poor soil qualities and climate conditions (e.g. average cereal yields, stocking density, percentage of permanent grassland, etc.) but this approach was rejected by the Council of Ministers.

In 2007, the Commission commenced working with its Joint Research Centre (JRC) to establish a common soil and climate criteria that would support the delineation of Disadvantaged Areas. The intention was that a Commission proposal would be submitted to the Council in early 2009 for adoption by the Council of Ministers by the end of 2009. However, this was also abandoned by the Commission, in favour of the current approach, using biophysical criteria such as soil and climatic criteria to designate areas of natural handicap.

Currently there are three categories of Disadvantaged Areas in the EU viz: Mountain Areas – none in Ireland but covers 16% of land area across the EU; Intermediate Less Favoured Areas – over 99% of Ireland's Least Favoured Areas (LFAs); Areas of Specific Handicap – 0.4% of Ireland's LFAs (Coastal Regions). The areas, which are subject to the current review, consist of almost all of the Disadvantaged Area in Ireland.

The Disadvantaged Areas, which, according to the Commission's suggestion, are to be re-titled as Areas of Natural Handicap, would be delineated by Member States using soil and climatic criteria, based on the following: Climate, including Low Temperature and Heat Stress; Soil, including Drainage, Texture and Stoniness, Rooting Depth and Chemical Properties; Soil and Climate, including Soil Moisture Balance and Soil Moisture Deficit; Terrain, including Slope.

The Commission have asked each Member States to use the suggested biophysical criteria that is relevant to farming in its territory to delineate, on a preliminary basis, the areas identifies as Areas of Natural Handicap. Bi-lateral meetings between the Member States, the Commission and their experts in the Joint Research Centre (JRC) have taken place; at these meetings (and in correspondence) officials of my Department, supported by research data provided by Teagasc, have indicated that the rainfall issue is the most important issue for Ireland; we have pointed out that the current EU Drainage criteria does not properly address the issue. We have pointed out that given that 90% of the country is grassland, with high rainfall and poor evaporation, traficability on farmland is a huge problem. Areas with the highest annual levels of rainfall tend to have the lowest animal stocking densities, with a limitation on the farming enterprises that can be pursued.

Following submission by my Department of the results of the required simulation exercises, further discussions took place with Commission and JRC representatives, following which my officials undertook to submit further supporting refined and detailed data. It is expected that this further data will be submitted shortly, following which there will then be further bi-lateral contact. It is my firm intention that everything will continue to be done to persuade the Commission and their JRC colleagues of the legitimacy of our arguments. This is a very important issue for Ireland, as the total area designated as disadvantaged is almost 75% of Ireland's total land area. From an economic perspective, the Disadvantaged Areas Scheme is particularly significant, contributing to the support of in excess of 100,000 Irish farm families, whose ability to farm is restricted by the physical environment, in particular, the impact of the prevailing wet cold climatic conditions in Ireland.

The Commission's intention is to submit a proposal to the Council some time in the second half of 2011 with a view to adopting it in advance of 2014, when it will come into force. Council Conclusions were unanimously agreed at Council, which essentially summarise the work carried out to date on the revision of intermediate LFAs and the objectives, basis and methodology for future work. It is envisaged that any changes to the Scheme will not be introduced before 2014.

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