Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael)
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Question 414: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he has retained the services of an external contract company to carry out checking on applications and or mapping for the purposes of assessing changes, amendments and payments to the single farm payment scheme; if he will provide details of the company concerned; if he has provided a timeframe for any outside agency and or company to have deliberations completed and reports filed with his Department; if he will consider advancing the first instalment of the payment to farmers in order that they will be in a position to meet outstanding debts that they are trying to manage in the knowledge that any discrepancy and or issue that is identified within his Department will be recouped in the second payment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32888/11]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The services of an external contractor are employed by my Department, on an ongoing basis, subject to the governing EU rules concerning tendering for contracts, to carry out digitising of maps submitted to my Department in support of various schemes, principally the Single Farm Payment scheme. No outside body has been engaged to carry out checking on applications or maps, for the purposes of assessing changes or amendments and payments to the Single Farm Payment. The services of an outside consultancy, KPMG, was, however, engaged to conduct a review of internal processing arrangements, including workflows and their report is currently under consideration.

Payments under the Single Payment Scheme are governing by EU regulations, principally regulations 73/2009, 1120/2009 and 1122/2009. It is not possible under these regulations to make payments to any cases that are not fully processed and clear. That said, however, payments of the 50% advance of the SFP are continuing apace, with payments runs being made twice weekly. Since these payments started on 17 October, over €537 million has issued to 108,000 applicants. Every effort continues to be made to maximise the numbers of payments being made and, in this regard, I would again urge any farmer who has been written to regarding an issue which is delaying payment, to respond without delay. I can also confirm that arrangements are well advanced to allow balancing payments commence issuing on target, as and from 1 December.