Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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Question 206: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when a person (details supplied) in County Cork will receive a single farm payment and REP scheme payment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1834/11]

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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An application under 2010 Single Payment Scheme was received from the person named on 13 May 2010. The 50% advance payment, under the Single Payment Scheme which issued on 18 October 2010, was on the basis of the land cleared at that stage, as lands declared required digitising.

Balancing payments under the scheme, which commenced 1 December, would, in normal circumstances, be confined to those whose applications are fully processed, specifically, where all digitising is finalised. However, following consultation with the EU Commission, agreement was reached whereby, in addition to issuing balancing payments to those farmers whose applications are fully processed and whose maps are fully digitised, payments will also issue to those farmers where some or all of their maps are still to be digitised, with the payment being calculated on the basis of the digitised land confirmed otherwise eligible.

I am pleased to say that, because of this change, many farmers, including the person named, whose balancing payments would otherwise have been delayed until their digitising is complete, have received an interim balancing payment.

The outstanding digitising of the land parcels in question has recently been finalised, which will allow the file of the person named be further processed, with a view to the outstanding balancing payments issuing shortly, under both the Single Payment Scheme and REPS.