Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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454. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to set out the status of the progress towards the programme for Government commitment to seek recognition from the European Commission for forgotten farmers as a group with specific disadvantage under the national reserve, in the same way that old young farmers are currently provided for; and the number of meetings has he had with EU Commission representatives on this issue. [40885/16]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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In accordance with the EU Regulations governing the National Reserve and the Young Farmers Scheme, a young farmer is defined as a farmer aged no more than 40 years of age in the year when s/he first submits an application under the Basic Payment Scheme and who commenced their farming activity no more than five years prior to submitting that application. The regulation also provides that priority under the National Reserve is given to ‘young farmers’ and to ‘new entrants to farming’. A new entrant is defined as a farmer who commenced their agricultural activity during the previous two years. The Regulations governing the operation of the National Reserve also include an optional provision whereby Member States may use the National Reserve to allocate new entitlements or give a top-up on the value of existing entitlements for persons who suffer from a ‘Specific Disadvantage’.

Following my Department’s consultation with the EU Commission, the then Minister announced in March 2015 that the group commonly known as “Old Young Farmers”, who established their holding between 1 January 2008 and 31 December 2009, and who, due to the timeframe of setting up their holding did not benefit from either the Installation Aid or the Young Farmer category of the National Reserve, can be considered as a ‘group suffering from specific disadvantage’.

The group of farmers commonly referred to as ‘forgotten farmers’ comprises farmers aged under 40, who established their holdings prior to 2008, and who hold low value entitlements. Preliminary analysis carried out by my Department shows there are some 3,900 farmers in this category. An estimation of the cost of increasing the value of existing entitlements to the National Average for these 3,900 farmers stands at over €12 million.

There was no National Reserve in 2016 as all available funding had been utilised under the 2015 scheme. In order to provide for a National Reserve in 2017 funding is required to replenish the Reserve. EU Regulations governing the scheme provide that funding for the replenishment of the National Reserve may be obtained by means of surrender of entitlements that remain unused by farmers for two consecutive years and by clawback derived following the sale of entitlements without land. It is envisaged that funding derived from these two sources in 2017 will be very limited. The Regulations also provide for the application of a linear cut to the value of all farmers’ entitlements to replenish the National Reserve.

Under the National Reserve priority access must be given to the two mandatory categories of ‘young farmer’ and ‘new entrant to farming’. Support for other categories such as those that may be regarded as suffering from ‘specific disadvantage’ can only be considered once the two mandatory categories have been catered for.

Consultation between Department officials and the Direct Payments Advisory Committee comprising members of the main farming organisations, agricultural education and farm advisory bodies takes place annually as part of the decision making process for the National Reserve. This meeting in relation to the 2017 National Reserve will take place early in 2017.

Decisions in relation to the National Reserve for 2017, including decisions regarding categories which fall outside of the two priority categories of ‘young farmers’ and ‘new entrants to farming’ that require EU Commission approval, will be considered once the position on potential funding has been established.