Ireland-Payment to Hill farmers.

REPUBLIC OF IRELAND-SPECIAL PAYMENT FOR HILL FARMERS.

A special payment of €7m for hill sheep farmers has been described as too little to secure the future of the sector by farming groups.

On Monday, Agriculture Minister Brendan Smith announced unused funds from the Single Farm Payment national reserve would be paid to hill sheep farmers in December.

Some 14,000 farmers will receive the Uplands Sheep Payment, giving each a payment of just over €500 each.

To qualify for payment, applicants must be eligible for the Disadvantaged Area Scheme in 2009 and have sheep recorded in the National Sheep Census for both 2007 and 2008.

Eligible applicants must also farm and declare mountain-type grazing land and have declared this on their Single Payment/Disadvantage Area applications in the past two years.

Making the announcement, Minister Smith said he recognised the difficulties and costs encountered by Irish sheep farmers.

He said he was anxious to introduce a scheme immediately in order that farmers could benefit from the funds in 2009.

Decision

He stressed the payment was for 2009 only and a decision on the use of unspent CAP funds and modulation money from 2010 onwards would be made at a later date.

ICSA sheep chairman Mervyn Sunderland welcomed the fact the decoupled payment is based on hectares rather than the amount of stock.

"It is welcome news that the sheep sector is finally receiving some badly needed funding. However, the maximum payment of €525/farmer is quite small and will do nothing to stem the exodus from sheep farming," Mr Sunderland said.

However, IFA president Padraig Walshe said the package fell well short of the €28m promised by Minister Coughlan and failed to address the chronic low income difficulties of 20,000 lowland sheep farmers.

"Minister Smith should have made it clear that he is committed to allocating the €29m unused Single Payment funds from 2010 onwards to the sheep sector in the form of a sheep maintenance payment to both lowland and hill sheep producers," Mr Walshe said.

He added it was a lost opportunity in terms of stabilising ewe numbers and sending a positive message about the future of the sector.

- Majella O’Sullivan