Tom Fleming (Kerry South, Independent)
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292. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the status of the agriculture reserve fund taken out of farmers' direct payments; the amount of funds to be reimbursed to farmers; when the payments will be made; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42857/15]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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In the context of the annual budgetary procedure of the European Union, the financial discipline mechanism which is implemented by the Member States involves a monetary deduction from some direct payments thereby creating a financial Crisis Reserve for the European Union. The crisis reserve is intended to provide additional support for the agricultural sector in the case of major crises affecting agricultural production or distribution. Under the EU Regulations, the amount set for the 2015 financial year is 1.393041% applicable to all payments in excess of €2,000. This deduction has been applied to balancing payments under the Basis Payment Scheme (BPS) which commenced issuing today.

In the event that the Crisis Reserve is not activated in the financial year, or it is not fully utilised, the balance not used is refunded to farmers in the subsequent financial year. The amount of the 2014 Financial Discipline deduction allocated to each Member State for reimbursement to farmers was not known prior to the arrangements for the payment of the BPS balancing payments. This figure has just recently been set at €12.9 million.

My Department is putting procedures in place to issue the Financial Discipline reimbursement to farmers in early 2016.