Sandra McLellan (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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344. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will approve an appeal for a person (details supplied) in County Cork to entitle that person to the national average under the basic payment scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34036/15]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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My Department issued a guide to Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) entitlements to the person named on 17^thFebruary 2015.This guide gave a provisional statement of entitlements from 2015 to 2019 under the new CAP reform. An application for a Review of Entitlements was submitted online on the 27^thMay 2015 in which the person named requested to have her entitlements topped up to the national average under the ‘force majeure’ category of the National Reserve. Under EU Regulation ‘force majeure’ is defined as:

(a) The death of the beneficiary;

(b) Long-term professional incapacity of beneficiary;

(c) A severe natural disaster gravely affecting the holding;

(d) The accidental destruction of livestock buildings on the holding;

(e) An epizootic or a plant disease affecting part or all of the beneficiary’s livestock or crops respectively;

(f) Expropriation of all or a part of the holding if that expropriation could not have been anticipated on the day of lodging the application.

As the circumstances outlined do not pertain to the person named, she does not qualify under Force Majeure. A further appeal was made under the ‘Specific disadvantage’ category of the National Reserve on the 17^thSeptember, 2015. This appeal is currently being processed and the person named will be contacted with the outcome of her appeal shortly.

In 2014, the person named received a total payment including Grassland Sheep Scheme of €2,438.28. Under the convergence model of the new CAP reform the person named will benefit from an increased value to her entitlements. Her total payment including greening will reach approximately €6,166 by 2019. This will result in an increase of approximately 150% from her 2014 Direct Payments.