Michael Lowry (Tipperary North, Independent)
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627. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his attention has been drawn to the penalty imposed on a person (details supplied) in County Tipperary in 2008 further to a single payment inspection; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the person was never notified of this penalty; if in view of this, the person can now appeal this penalty; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55308/13]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Department’s records indicate that in 2008, the amount of nitrogen from livestock manure applied to land on the holding of the person named above (including that deposited by animals) was 195 kgs per hectare, which exceeded the limit of 170 kgs per hectare set down in the Nitrates Regulations.

My Department wrote to the person named in February 2009 notifying them that they had exceeded the Nitrogen limit for 2008, and asked if there were any explanation why the total Nitrogen from livestock manure applied to their lands exceeded the 170 kg limit. No response was received to this letter.

The person named was then notified by letter dated 14 September 2011 of the 3% reduction to be applied to all applicable 2008 Direct Payments. The person named was also advised of their right to appeal this decision to the Agriculture Appeals Office, within 3 months of the date of the notification letter. My Department understands that the person named did not avail of this option.

The payments due to the person named under the 2013 Single Payment and Disadvantaged Areas’ Schemes were processed without any penalties being applied in respect of the 2013 scheme year. However, deductions were made from these payments to recoup monies owing as a result of Cross Compliance penalties applied to the 2011 and 2012 Single Payment and Disadvantaged Areas’ Schemes and to the REPS Scheme Years of 2008, 2009 and 2011. The details of these penalties were previously notified to the person named.