Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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418. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when the agri finance scheme as announced in budget 2017 will commence; the criteria farmers must meet to be eligible for the fund; the conditions of the scheme; the involvement in the application process; the supports available to farmers to aid with their application; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38771/16]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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The Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI) is targeting that the loans from the "Agriculture Cashflow Support Loan Scheme" will be available in the market in January 2017. My Department is contributing €25 million in total, €11.1 million from the EU’s ‘exceptional adjustment aid for milk and other livestock farmers’ and some €14 million in National funding, which leverages a total fund of €150 million. To satisfy the requirements of the EU package, applicants must be engaged in primary agricultural production and must also engage in one of these activities:

- Application of environmental and climate friendly production methods

- Implementation of quality schemes or projects aiming at promoting quality and value added

- Implementation of cooperation projects

- Training in financial instruments and risk management tools.

I announced last month that the SBCI had invited financial institutions to take part in the Scheme. There were a number of applications submitted by the closing date of 25 November and these will now be the subject of a formal approval process.

The normal lending criteria of the participating financial institutions will also apply. This is a cash flow support facility to improve the working capital position of viable businesses. The loans are primarily to pay down expensive forms of credit such as merchant credit and short-term facilities such as overdrafts. The loans may not be used for:

- Refinance of existing term loans

- The refinance of undertakings in financial difficulties (as opposed to cash flow difficulties, as defined in EU guidelines)

- New investments.

However, by improving the cash flow position of their business by using this facility, many will be in a better position to negotiate and restructure existing loan commitments.

More operational details will be available when the Scheme is launched.