Written answers

Tuesday, 31 March 2015

Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine

Rural Development Programme

Photo of Éamon Ó CuívÉamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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172. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his plans on opening the various schemes under the rural development scheme to new applications; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12716/15]

Photo of Simon CoveneySimon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The new Rural Development Programme (RDP) 2014-2020 will be a key support in enhancing the competitiveness of the agri-food sector, achieving a more sustainable management of natural resources and ensuring a more balanced development of rural areas. Over the last few months, detailed and intensive negotiations have been ongoing between my Department and the Commission in order to secure agreement on the new RDP.These bilateral negotiations have recently concluded and Ireland’s draft RDP has now been formally resubmitted to the EU Commission, where it has entered the Commission’s final round of inter-services consultation.

The formal adoption of the RDP will not be finalised until after the Multiannual Financial Framework is amended at EU level. However, in order to ensure that this does not delay the roll out of RDPs as they are agreed with the Commission, Commissioner Hogan recently announced that letters of comfort will issue to Member States as they agree their RDPs bilaterally with the Commission.

When the Commission’s final round of inter-services consultation is complete and the letter of comfort has issued, the schemes and supports contained in Ireland’s RDP will be rolled out in line with the annual budgetary process.

In advance of this, however, I asked my officials to prioritise reaching an agreement with the Commission on the new GLAS scheme in order that this could be launched at an earlier date. On foot of this approach, I launched t he GLAS scheme on 23rd February to allow work to begin on GLAS plans.

Officials in my Department are continuing to work closely with the EU Commission to ensure that the final stages of the approval process can now be expedited.

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