Conor McGuinness (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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132. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if it is the policy of his Department to withhold the total farm payments due to a farmer who is unable to produce a commonage evidence letter due to an ongoing dispute between leaser and lessee. [55011/25]

Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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Applications received under the Basic Income Support for Sustainability (BISS) and other area-based schemes are required to go through a series of verification checks before an application can be deemed eligible to draw down payment. These checks include, but are not limited to, late applications, active farmer, land eligibility, agricultural activity, land at disposal and, where applicable, commonage evidence checks.

With regard to the land at disposal checks, and in particular the request to provide commonage evidence, Section 12 of the BISS and other Area Based Schemes Terms and Conditions, requires that "Farmers who wish to declare commonage must be able to provide evidence of their right to declare the land. The type of evidence that is acceptable depends on the type of commonage being declared".

Where an applicant is unable to meet the scheme requirements as a result of their inability to provide the requisite supporting documentation, their application will be reviewed accordingly.

This review may result in payments due being withheld in full, reduced partially and/or subject to penalty depending on the circumstances of the case. The level of over declaration in reference to the total claimed area will determine the level of penalty to be applied in accordance with Section 16 of the BISS and other Area Based Schemes Terms and Conditions.

My Department remains available to assist farmers if they have a query on commonage land included in their application via Commonages@agriculture.gov.ie