Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South East, Independent)
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65. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the progress to date on the introduction of single farm payment reforms under the new Common Agriculture Policy budget; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39362/13]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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After an in-depth process of consultation and negotiation that was initiated in 2011, the Council of Ministers, the European Parliament and the Commission reached agreement on the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy under the Irish Presidency on 26 June 2013.

The agreement provides a framework for the continuing application of the CAP for the period 2015 to 2019, ensuring uniformity between Member States of the Union while allowing for a high degree of flexibility for Member States in their application of individual measures. In July of this year I initiated a process of consultation with all relevant stakeholders to ascertain their views on the most appropriate application of the Direct Payment Regulation in light of Ireland's unique agricultural profile and circumstances. The final date for submissions on the Consultative Paper was 20^th September. I intend to formulate and publicise the final shape of the CAP in Ireland towards the end of 2013.

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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66. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he is to apply his proposals in relation to internal convergence and greening, along with the mandatory minimum payment that forms part of the Common Agricultural Policy, the amount of payment a farmer on the following current payment - €15, €60, €120, €180, €250, €500, €1,000 - would receive by 2019; allowing that there will be no coupled payment, and a deduction of 3% for the national reserve; 2% for the young farmer provision and 1% to the emergency; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39547/13]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The provision to limit convergence in the form of the 'approximation' model was proposed by me throughout the negotiation process and was adopted by the Commission, European Parliament and Council as part of the final CAP agreement reached under the Irish Presidency on 26 June 2013.

While certain elements of this Irish convergence model are fixed, the Regulation also allows for a degree of flexibility on several essential aspects of its implementation.

When calculating the number of entitlements to be granted to a farmer in 2015, a Member State may base this on either the number of eligible hectares declared in 2015 or the number of eligible hectares declared in 2013 or 2015, whichever is lesser.

The total value of entitlements to be allocated to a farmer in 2015 will be based on a percentage of the farmer's 2014 value. However that value may be based on either the 'payments' received by the farmer in 2014 or on the value of the 'entitlements' definitively held by the farmer in 2014.

In addition there are issues relating to the pace and degree of convergence. These include the question of the 'minimum payment' whereby all farmers with low value entitlements must achieve at least 60% of the national average under the Basic Payment Scheme by 2019.

All of these issues are presented in the consultation paper which I issued in July. Until such time that final decisions are made in relation to these and other related issues, I am not in a position to provide the required statistics. Neither do I wish to pre-empt any submissions that may arise from the ongoing consultation process.