Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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267. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if the allocation will remain within the Irish pillar 1 envelope in cases in which farmers do not apply or qualify for the eco scheme element of pillar 1 in the next CAP; if so, the way redistribution will be organised; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28941/21]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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The green architecture is a key element of the CAP trilogue negotiation process and has been the subject of much debate between the three institutions. My ambition is to protect the incomes of our farm families through a fair and flexible CAP.

The Council position includes the proposed introduction of ECO schemes into the system of direct payments. A ring-fenced budgetary amount for ECO schemes of 20% of the direct payment budget has been proposed by Agriculture Ministers, with a two-year 'learning' period permitted at the start of the CAP Strategic Plan, to allow Member States avoid any loss of unspent funds due to lower-than-expected take-up of ECO schemes. The Parliament’s approach is more prescriptive. They are seeking that 30% of Direct Payments be directed to ECO schemes and that there would be no learning phase.

Member States must introduce ECO schemes but farmers can choose whether to apply. However, participation in ECO schemes will allow farmers maximise their payments. A significant concern for all Member States, is the potential loss of unspent funds in the case of low uptake by farmers and recent discussions are focussing on how to mitigate this risk. This is not a situation I want to see.

While I welcome the introduction of ECO schemes in the next CAP, I have been consistent in my approach that I cannot accept a potentially serious risk to the loss of CAP funding with the introduction of new ECO schemes if Member States do not have the necessary flexibiltiy to manage this.

Trilogue discussions are still ongoing and final agreement on the CAP, including the green architecture, is dependent on the outcome of this process. My officials and I are continuing to work hard to ensure that the result of the CAP negotiation process will have the best possible outcome for Irish farmers.

Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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268. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if the next CAP will provide for coupled payments such as sheep or suckler cow schemes to be delivered under pillar 1; if he is actively pursuing options for such payments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28942/21]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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The development of the CAP Strategic Plan (CSP) involves a number of stages, including SWOT analysis, needs assessment, intervention design, financial allocations, target setting (including monitoring) and governance systems. The draft CSP will also be subject to an ex-ante evaluation, Strategic Environmental Assessment and Appropriate Assessment including a public consultation on the draft CSP and draft Environmental Report.

I have, with my officials, continued to engage extensively with stakeholders on the future of CAP. Consultations on the development of the CSP will continue via the CAP Consultative Committee, which comprises representatives of the main stakeholders including farm bodies, NGOs (including the Environmental Pillar), industry representatives and academia. It also includes representatives from Government Departments including DPER, DRCD, DECC, DHLGH (NPWS), and Government Agencies, including Bord Bia, Teagasc and the EPA. The Committee has met on 18 occasions with further meetings planned throughout 2021.

Further public consultations on the development of the CSP are being considered. I will also continue to engage with stakeholders as we develop our CAP Strategic Plan 2023-2027 to meet the deadline of submission to the Commission by 1st January 2023.

Trilogue negotiations on the CAP proposals are ongoing in Brussels. Until these have concluded, we will not have certainty with regard to the options available to Ireland under the CAP proposals. However, it is expected that the new Regulations will allow Member States the option to consider the provision of limited coupled supports if they consider these appropriate.

Ireland decoupled the Single Farm Payment from livestock numbers following the CAP Reform in 2008, in order to permit farmers to respond to market signals, and obviate the obligation to keep potentially loss making animals to secure the Single Farm Payment. The view taken at the time was that coupled payments obliged farmers to keep animals, even when market conditions were poor, that they potentially reduced the quality of livestock and that there was an increased risk of leakage of coupled subsidies to the processing sector.

Coupled payments would not, of course, lead to an increase in payments for farmers as they would be funded from within the Pillar I envelope.

My view is that supports for the livestock sector can be better targeted through specific schemes aimed at improving the economic and environmental sustainability, as well as the animal welfare credentials, of beef and sheep production. Traditional ‘coupled’ payments as set out in the draft Regulations would not allow for the effective targeting of such supports.

Work is currently underway on development of supports for the sector under the next CAP which will be aimed at further supporting the economic, environmental and social sustainability of beef and sheep farms in Ireland.