Brian Walsh (Galway West, Independent)
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93. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when a decision will be made on an application under the disadvantaged areas scheme and the single farm payment scheme 2014 in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Galway; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13609/15]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The person named submitted a 2014 Single Farm Payment/Disadvantaged Areas’ scheme application on 13 May 2014. EU Regulations governing the administration of these schemes require that full and comprehensive administrative checks, including in some cases on-farm inspections, be completed before any payments issue. The application of the person named was selected for a ground eligibility inspection. This inspection identified discrepancies between the areas declared and the area found resulting in an over-declaration of greater than 50% in respect of the Single Farm Payment Scheme and the Disadvantaged Areas’ Scheme. Under the Terms and Conditions of these schemes this resulted in no payments under these schemes in respect of 2014 and the application of administrative fines to be offset against any future EU payments. The person named was notified of this decision on 23 October 2014.

The person named sought a review of this decision and the outcome, which was to uphold the original decision, was notified by letter of 19 January 2015.

My Department understands that the person named has recently appealed this decision to the independent Agriculture Appeals Office. The person named will be notified of the outcome of the appeal on completion of the appeal process.

Officials from my Department are contacting the person named to seek further clarification on the matter of the two parcels referred to by the Deputy.