Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Area-based schemes under the Rural Development Programme, 2007-13, are subject to EU Regulations which require detailed administrative checks on all applications to be completed before payments can issue. In the case of the Rural Environment Protection Scheme (REPS) and the Agri-environment Options Scheme (AEOS), these rigorous procedures include a cross check with the area declared by applicants under the Single Payment Scheme (SPS) and recorded in the Department's Land Parcel Identification System as well as on-farm inspections to ensure that applications meet scheme conditions and cross-compliance requirements. REPS and AEOS are administered from the Department's offices in Johnstown Castle, Wexford, while the SPS is administered from the offices in Portlaoise. Staff in both offices work closely on an on-going basis to resolve any issues relating to discrepancies in the areas declared under different schemes or other relevant queries as quickly as possible.

I am of course conscious of the financial pressures on many farm families and of the importance of grant payments to their incomes and cash-flow. Accordingly I have given the highest priority to the processing and payment of all scheme payments and to the elimination of all unnecessary delays in processing grant applications.