Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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968. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he plans to ring-fence a portion of TAMS funding for slurry storage on tillage farms; if there will be additional machinery categories for tillage farms; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8049/22]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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TAMS II is a demand-led voluntary scheme and to date, total expenditure under the seven measures of the TAMS, including transitional expenditure, has reached in excess of €337m with commitments of an additional €126m made to scheme participants who have yet to draw down those grants. Some 47,499 applications have been approved under the scheme.

Funding for slurry storage is currently available to all eligible farmers under the Animal Welfare, Safety and Nutrient Storage Scheme, the Young Farmer's Capital Investment Scheme and the Organic Capital Investment Scheme under TAMS II.  Grant-aid for tillage farm machinery such harvesting, spreading and pesticide equipment is currently available under the Tillage Capital Investment Scheme. Details of all available investments and eligibility criteria can be found on the Department's website.

There are no plans to add any additional categories of grant-aid for tillage farmers to TAMS  at this time but I am open to hearing proposals on the matter.

Ireland's draft CAP Strategic Plan 2023 – 2027 which lists the range of interventions currently being proposed, was submitted to the EU Commission on 31st December 2021. It is proposed that applications from Tillage applicants will continue to be provided for under the Capital Investment Scheme with the full details to be finalised. The Capital Investment Scheme, as is the case with all proposals under the CAP Strategic Plan (CSP), is in the process of development and is subject to the formal approval of the European Commission.