Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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709. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he requested the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation to submit proposals for changing the state aid thresholds at EU level ahead of the next state aid modernisation working group meeting which takes place here on 27 April 2018; and his plans to protect Irish enterprises, exporting companies and related jobs from a hard Brexit WTO scenario and other negative trading scenarios as outlined in the recent Copenhagen economics report. [12301/18]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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710. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will request at European level changes to state aid thresholds at EU level in order to protect Irish enterprises, exporting companies and related jobs from a hard Brexit WTO scenario following the EU Council's draft guidelines published on 7 March 2018 in which it confirmed that due to the UK’s position of refusing customs union and single market solutions the UK is hurtling towards third country status; and if he has made this request to the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation. [12302/18]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 709 and 710 together.

Brexit poses enormous challenges for the agri-food and fisheries sectors by virtue of their exposure to the UK market, as confirmed by numerous studies, including by the ESRI, Department of Finance and, most recently, by Copenhagen Economics. 

I and my Department have been engaging extensively with these sectors since the UK Referendum vote through my Department’s Stakeholder Consultative Committee, the All-Island Civic Dialogue process and ongoing bilateral contacts. Among the many issues that have been raised is the question of how to facilitate potential measures that would, for example, support market and product diversification by companies, given the restrictions imposed by EU State Aid rules. 

Following a meeting last November between the then Tánaiste and Commissioner Vestager (who has responsibility for EU State Aid policy) a Working Group was established to examine this area.  This Working Group comprises representatives from DG Competition, the Department of Business, Enterprise & Innovation, Enterprise Ireland and my Department.  The objective of the Group is to scope and design schemes to support enterprises impacted by Brexit in line with State Aid rules.  The Working Group has met three times and in between these meetings, there has been engagement on specific issues in order to continue to progress matters.  Should issues arise that require an approach that does not fit within the existing State Aid rules, this will be raised as part of the Working Group discussions.  

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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711. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the status of the proposed changes to the €15,000 state aid threshold for farmers at EU Council level. [12303/18]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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The European Commission launched its public consultation process on the agriculture de minimis Regulation EU (No) 1408/2013, on 1 March 2018 and which runs until 16 April 2018.  As part of the consultation process, the Commission is proposing to amend some of the provisions and conditions contained within the current Regulation. 

The main proposal is that the individual threshold limit of €15,000 over a period of three fiscal years be increased to €25,000 and the national threshold limit be increased from €66,280,00 to €111,134,500. 

I am pleased to see that an increase in the threshold limits is now being proposed and I look forward to the outcome of the Commission's public consultation process on this matter.