Some €31.5m has been paid out to 3,466 Wexford farmers under advance payments of the 2018 Basic Payments Scheme, Fine Gael Minister Michael D’Arcy has confirmed to WexfordToday.com.
“These payments are a vital support for farmers across the sector in maximising cash flow and are particularly welcome at this time in light of the adverse weather conditions experienced on Wexford farms this year.
“It is a key priority for Fine Gael to get these payments out to the greatest number of farmers possible at the earliest date allowed under EU legislation, subject to the necessary requirements of the Schemes being met.”
The Minister for Agriculture secured EU Commission agreement for a higher advance payment of 70% for 2018 rather than 50% as provided for in the EU legislation.
“Some 93% of eligible applicants for the BPS have now been paid in this first tranche, and the success of our move to full online applications this year has helped us to deliver further efficiencies in the processing of payments which are of direct benefit to farmers.
“Payments under the 2018 Areas of Natural Constraints Scheme (ANC) also continue to issue as cases are cleared for payment,” Minister D’Arcy said.
Minister for Agriculture, Michael Creed, said: “The advance BPS payment and the ANC payments taken together mean that almost €935 million has now issued to Irish farmers in the last month.
“I have also secured an additional €23 million for farmers in the ANC allocation for 2019, bringing the total budget for that Scheme to €250 million.”
Minister D’Arcy concluded: “I can assure farmers that payments will continue to issue under both schemes as individual cases are cleared, and regular pay runs will be in place over the coming weeks to ensure this. Farmers who have been contacted by my Department with queries in relation to their applications should also respond at their earliest convenience to facilitate payment.”
To facilitate farmers who, wish to contact the Department in relation to their BPS or ANC payments, extended hours are now in place for the Direct Payments Helpline.
For the period until October 27th, farmers can ring the Department at 076 106 4420 between 9 am and 8.30 pm on weekdays and between 9 am to 1 pm on Saturday, October 27th.