Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael)
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484. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if circumstances could be taken into consideration in relation to a clawback in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Clare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53881/13]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The person named commenced REPS 4 in June 2008 and received payments for the first five years of their contract. REPS 4 is a measure under the current 2007-13 Rural Development Programme and is subject to EU Regulations which require detailed administrative checks on all applications to be completed before any payments can issue. On entering REPS the applicant agrees to carry out their farming activities in accordance with the Terms and Conditions of the Rural Environment Protection Scheme and the Agri-Environmental Plan drawn up by an approved Planner for a period of five years. In all cases where the area of the farm is reduced by the disposal of land, or land is found to be ineligible, annual payment for the remaining years of the Plan will be recalculated on the remaining eligible land and the applicant will be notified in writing if reimbursement of monies if required.

In 2010 the person named disposed of 6.57 ha of the 27.35 ha of lands declared for payment in the REPS Agri-environmental plan drawn up in 2008. Consequently, on the 18th November 2013 a letter issued to the person named detailing the amount to be reimbursed and also affording them the ‘right of appeal’ to the local Inspectorate. To-date no appeal has been received by my Department.