Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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Question 460: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, further to Parliamentary Question No. 165 of 8 February 2012 and subsequent detailed information supplied, his views on the fact that a substantial number of applications under the early retirement scheme, which were received after 14 October, have been approved for payment, whereas of 139 applications received after 14 October 2008 under the installation aid scheme, only one has been approved for payment after appeal to the agriculture appeals office; if he will comment in general on the circumstances surrounding this appeal; if he will comment further on the different approach pursued by his Department to late applications under both schemes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12751/12]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Early Retirement Scheme and the Young Farmer's Installation Scheme were suspended for new applications with effect from 14 October 2008. The early Retirement Scheme was reopened temporarily with limited funding for applications from 23 September 2009 to 30 October 2009 in order to accommodate as many as possible of those farmers who had completed, or were close to completing, applications at the point when the scheme was suspended.

The Young Farmers' Installation Scheme has remained suspended since 14 October 2008. In one case, my Department paid a grant under the Scheme where the Agriculture Appeals Office held, by decision of 13 June 2011, that my Department was required to process the application notwithstanding the fact that it had been lodged with my Department after 14 October 2008. Following a request by my Department for a review of the decision concerned, the Acting Director of the Agriculture Appeals Office upheld the decision on 19 August 2011. The Agriculture Appeals Office is an independent agency set up under the Agriculture Appeals Act 2001.