Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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387. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the approximate additional annual increase in Exchequer funding needed for the beef data and genomics programme if compensation were to be fixed at rates (details supplied), in tabular form. [51236/17]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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The Beef Data and Genomics Programme is currently the main support for the suckler sector and provides farmers with some €300 million of funding over the lifetime of the current RDP.

Last April the BDGP was reopened to beef suckler farmers who were not already part of the scheme. We have 24,662 herds between BDGP I and II. BDGP II provides for payments to farmers for completion of actions which deliver accelerated genetic improvement in the national herd and improvement of its environmental sustainability.

Any change to the scheme would be very difficult in the context of an innovative scheme which has undergone an approval process by the European Commission. Payments to farmers under the BDGP are made on the basis of costs incurred or income forgone, any change to payment rates would require farmers to undertake additional actions to justify any increased payment.

The BDGP as currently configured represents a balance between direct income support for the sector and rural development measures designed to improve its competitiveness and sustainability. I believe that it is entirely appropriate to maintain this balance of developmental and income supports into the future.

Bearing the above information in mind, the following table sets out the additional notional per animal costs as requested.