Bobby Aylward (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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21. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the total number of persons in counties Carlow and Kilkenny that have not received 85% of their total 2016 payment under GLAS 1, GLAS 2 and AEOS; the reason for this delay; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12364/17]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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Under the EU Regulations governing the Green, Low-Carbon, Agri-Environment Scheme (GLAS) and the Agri-Environment Options Scheme (AEOS) a comprehensive administrative check, including cross-checks with the Land Parcel Identification System, must be completed before any payment can issue. 

My Department as the accredited Paying Agency must ensure that, before payment issues, everything in an application that can be checked is checked as required under the regulations. Therefore, payments can only issue where all the required validation checks have been successfully passed.

In relation to 2016 payments, under AEOS the previous agri-environment Scheme, just over 8,600 AEOS participants were due a payment. AEOS II participants completed their 5-year contracts on 31 December 2016. Under the EU Regulations governing this Scheme and all other area-based payment schemes, a full check, including cross-checks with the Land Parcel Identification System must take place before the final payment can issue. As all AEOS II participants will be receiving their final payments under the scheme, re-checks on payments made for all scheme years must be completed before final payment can be processed. This is the same procedure as applied to AEOS 1 participants finishing in that Scheme.

 To date, AEOS 2016 payments amounting to over €22m have issued. The remaining cases are currently being checked and payments will continue to issue on an ongoing weekly basis as these cases are cleared.

A total of 49 farmers in Co. Carlow were due a 2016 payment in AEOS of which 41 have been paid and 8 are awaiting payment.

As issues with outstanding GLAS cases are resolved they are being paid in weekly payment runs. Further payments are issuing on a weekly basis with payments valued at over €110m now issued and over 84% of participants now paid. Further payments are issuing on a weekly basis.

2016 payments represent the first full year of payment under GLAS. At the end of December 2016, there were approximately 37,500 active participants in the GLAS scheme, of which 27,400 or over 71% received payments valued at over €97m, representing 85% of their 2016 payment.

Some 280 farmers are active GLAS 1 and a further 128 are active in GLAS 2 in County Carlow of which 224 in GLAS 1 and 111 in GLAS 2, have successfully completed the GLAS prepayment checks in respect of the 2016 scheme year and a first payment instalment of 85% has issued. 

The current position for Co. Carlow is that 56 farmers in GLAS 1 and 17 farmers in GLAS 2 have yet to receive their payment and their applications continue to be processed.   

For Co. Kilkenny 435 farmers are active GLAS 1 and a further 216 are active in GLAS 2 of which 372 in GLAS 1 and 179 in GLAS 2 have successfully completed the GLAS prepayment checks in respect of the 2016 scheme year and a first payment instalment of 85% has issued. 

The current position for Co. Kilkenny is that 63 farmers in GLAS 1 and 37 farmers in GLAS 2 have yet to receive their payment and their applications continue to be processed.   

Outstanding payments under both GLAS 1 and GLAS 2 are largely delayed due to declaration of incompatible parcel usage on the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) application for a chosen GLAS action; changes in parcel boundaries on which a GLAS action is chosen including splitting or merging of parcels; an applicant no longer claiming a parcel on their 2016 BPS; incomplete documentation such as incorrect information on Low-Emission Slurry Declaration; incomplete interim commonage management plans and incompatible data and parcel history on Department databases.

Payments under the Scheme will continue to issue on an ongoing basis as issues are resolved and cases are cleared for payment.