Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht when a turf compensation payment will issue to a person (details supplied) in county Cavan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43435/12]

Jimmy Deenihan (Kerry North-West Limerick, Fine Gael)
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An application for compensation under the cessation of turf cutting compensation scheme, administered by my Department, has been received for the individual referred to in the Deputy’s Question.

One of the qualifying criteria for the scheme is that the claimant must have been cutting turf on the lands in question in the relevant five year period. If, however, an individual has a legal interest in one of the 53 designated raised bog sites and had not been extracting turf in the relevant five year period, my Department is willing to examine the feasibility of relocating such interests to alternative non-designated bogs. It is not proposed to make the financial payment in such cases.

I am advised that the individual referred to in the Deputy’s Question had not been extracting turf from the site in the relevant five year period and has not expressed an interest in relocation to an alternative non-designated bog. My Department will be writing to him in relation to his position in due course.