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Farmers exiting the REPS 3 scheme urgently need
the reintroduction of the AEOS 3 scheme, according to the
IFA.
The IFA’s recently elected rural development chairman Flor
McCarthy said the immediate priority for Agriculture Minister
Simon Coveney must be to introduce an AEOS 3 scheme over the
coming month to support farmers who have finished REPS 3.
Mr McCarthy said - "It is vital that an AEOS 3 scheme, involving
the restoration of the maximum payment of €5,000, increasing
the Natura payment to €150/ha and allowing up to 10,000 farmers
to join the scheme is made available."
The IFA
spokesman criticised the decision of Mr Coveney to reduce
REPS 4 payment by 10%. He called upon the minister to stick
to his promise to reduce compliance costs to make up the loss
to farmers.
Mr McCarthy added - "Changes to stocking rate criteria must
not discriminate against genuine farmers whose land is not
capable of carrying greater than the 0.15LU/ha and who will
have difficulty reaching the new 0.3 LU/ha limit for 2012."
He also called for concessions for farmers
who have part of their farm in disadvantaged areas and who
stand to lose under the new criteria.
On the CAP, he said it was vital that Ireland secures adequate
EU funding for rural development measures post-2013. In the
current 7-year programme, the EU allocation to Ireland is
€346m, which was matched by a similar amount of state co-financing.
Yo view the IFA press release - Click
Here
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