Martin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein)
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71. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when farmers in receipt of sheep welfare scheme payments will receive their next due payments. [41625/17]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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I am very aware of the importance of the sheep sector, and of the challenges which many farmers in that sector face.  In view of this, in December 2016, I launched the  Sheep Welfare Scheme.  This new scheme was introduced by way of a formal amendment to our Rural Development Programme, 2014-2020, and aims to contribute to the continued development in animal health and welfare in the sheep sector. 

All applicants in the scheme are required to choose two actions from a range of possible actions, with different actions available for lowland and hill flocks.  For undertaking these actions, farmers will receive a payment of €10 per eligible ewe under the Scheme.

We are currently in the middle of Year 1 of the Scheme, and payments have thus not yet issued.  I am however conscious of the importance to farmers of payments under schemes such as this, so I can confirm that advance payments under the Scheme will commence in late Autumn this year.  I am also happy to confirm that the EU Commission has agreed to my request that advance payments under such Rural Development Schemes can be set at 85% this year, rather than the standard 75% as set out in the relevant EU regulation.  The balancing payment of 15% will then issue in 2018.