Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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41. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when a payment under the agri-environment options scheme will be made to a person (details supplied) in county Galway; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35929/15]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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My Department is currently examining approximately 400 cases that submitted invoices from one particular company to verify and support claims under the non-productive capital investment action of AEOS. It is known that in some cases the invoices submitted were for greater amounts than actually paid by the participants.

Funding provided under the scheme comes partly from the EU and partly from the National Exchequer. There is a requirement and obligation to ensure that the expenditure claimed by scheme participants reflects the reality of what took place. For that reason my Department wrote to participants requesting alternative proof that the amounts claimed were in fact the amounts paid.

The person named was written to on 11 June 2015 regarding the non-productive capital investment claim that he had submitted. This letter requested the submission of alternative verifiable proof to support one of the invoices that was included in the claim. A reply to this letter was received on 30 June last. My Department officials are now examining this case and a decision will issue to the person-named very soon.