Written answers
Tuesday, 29 July 2025
Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine
Animal Diseases
Cathy Bennett (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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2234. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will provide details of the amount raised from farmers through levies; the contribution of the European Union; the amount of Exchequer funding allocated to the TB allocation programme; the TB incidence rate, in each the years 2019 to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43943/25]
Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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The answer to the Deputy's queries are found in the below table and corresponding notes underneath.
- | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 YTD |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
- | €000's | €000's | €000's | €000's | €000's | €000's | €000's |
Bovine Disease Levies - Receipts | €7,368 | €7,849 | €7,580 | €7,648 | €7,935 | €8,090 | €2,973 |
Direct cost of the TB Programme excluding staff costs | €37,544 | €43,939 | €52,489 | €57,448 | €74,284 | €100,616 | €52,015 |
Contribution of the European Union * | €8,789 | €7,425 | €4,336 | €2,700 | €1,595 | €0,000 | €0,000 |
TB Incidence Rate** | 3.72% | 4.38% | 4.33% | 4.31% | 4.94% | 6.04% | 6.40% |
** Each full year figure is an annual figure. The 2025 YTD figure is a rolling figure.
Note: the 2025 YTD figures are up the end of June 2025.
Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)
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2235. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when he intends to increase the ceiling rates of compensation for livestock impacted by TB to enable proper alignment with actual valuations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44082/25]
Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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My Department provides a range of financial supports that focus on compensating farmers for both direct and indirect losses incurred as a result of a TB breakdown on the farm.
The On Farm Market Valuation Scheme is the principal compensation measure available to Herd-owners whose herds are affected by a bovine TB breakdown in their herd. The Scheme aims to compensate farmers up to the open market value of an animal as if they were not affected by disease, subject to ceilings.
In addition to the compensation package for eligible reactor animals that are removed during a TB breakdown, my Department operates three supplementary schemes that assist farmers with the indirect losses incurred as a result of a TB breakdown on their farm.
The Income Supplement Scheme is a targeted scheme which assists farmers who lose 9.5% or more of their herd to disease due to a single TB breakdown. Income supplement is only payable in cases where the 9.5% threshold is met in one continuous restriction period and where full Depopulation is not deemed an appropriate measure.
The Hardship Grant is a targeted scheme aimed at assisting eligible herd-owners who retain and feed animals during prolonged periods of restriction as a result of a TB breakdown and that have more animals than the same period in the previous year. The scheme runs each year for herds restricted between November 1st and April 30th.
Depopulation Grant is paid for each animal removed in the depopulation measure and for those herds that are partial or fully depopulated on foot of a veterinary decision made on analysis of the overall TB disease situation within a herd.
As part of the work of the TB Forum, a dedicated Financial Working Group was established to review the financial modelling of various elements of the Bovine TB Eradication programme. As a result of the agreement reached in this Group, there were rate enhancements to the Income Supplement Scheme, the Hardship Grant and the Depopulation Grant as well as enhanced ceilings for select animals being removed as part of the On Farm Market Valuation Scheme.
In addition, the Financial Working Group also expanded the eligibility criteria under the Income Supplement Scheme and Hardship Grant Schemes.
I am committed to reducing TB incidence rates across the country. Recent years has unfortunately seen a deterioration in the incidence of this disease, however all stakeholders and I are working collaboratively to ensure that we all ensure all steps necessary to control this disease are taken.
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