Michael Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent)
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262. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his Department's plans to rectify an anomaly in qualifying for a scheme (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45966/23]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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The Sheep Improvement Scheme (SIS) is funded under Ireland’s CAP Strategic Plan 2023-2027. It provides support to sheep farmers for carrying out actions that improve animal health and welfare in the sheep sector and builds on the progress made by the Sheep Welfare Scheme (SWS).

The first year of the Sheep Improvement Scheme runs from February 1^st2023, to December 31^st2023. The Scheme opened for applications in November 2022 and included a provision for new entrants to sheep farming to apply to participate in the scheme. For the purposes of Year 1 of the scheme, a new entrant to the scheme was defined as an applicant who had applied for a new flock number within the three-year period from 1 December 2019 to 30 November 2022. It should be noted that a new entrant could also have been an applicant with an existing flock number who had not held or traded in sheep for a three-year period from 1 December 2019 to 30 November 2022.

I would like to inform the Deputy that the second year of the Sheep Improvement Scheme will run from January 1^st2024 to December 31^st 2024. New entrants, including those who did not meet the criteria in Year 1 of the Scheme, will also have a provision to apply to join the Scheme from Year 2 onwards. The terms and conditions are currently under review including the period a new entrant can have applied for a flock number.