Relevant Matter
Matters involving public funds
Public Policy Area
EU Affairs
Period
1 Sep, 2024 to 31 Dec, 2024
Specific Details
Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) Funding
Intended results
To emphasise that farmers need a fair income and Standard of living for current and future generations.
- To increase the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) funding to better align with increased objectives and possible EU enlargement, or reduce the conditionality requirements on farmers.
- That the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), and its mechanisms, must put farmers and food production at its core in design.
- To alleviate the burden of proof to receive direct support by relying on self-declaration and/or other mechanisms.
- Continuation of the elevated state aid ceiling of €250,000 and €300,000 for the agriculture and fisheries sectors currently in place until June 2024.
- That the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) budget for organics must be maintained, even with recent new entrants, the area under organic production in Ireland remains significantly below the European average.
- To minimise the supporting documentation required in individual Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme (TAMS) applications, and where Ministerial agreement for 100% approval to eligible applicants is provided – enable Department to progress without obligation for applications to undergo Rank and Selection stage.
- That there is proactive individualised communications with farmers in advance of action deadlines so as to minimise noncompliance and/or associated appeals/penalties etc.
- That an increased number of amendments to the CAP Strategic Plan (CSP) should be accommodated.
- To reduce excessive conditionality requirements. The inflexibility of the three-crop-rule and crop diversification requirements of Good Agricultural and Environmental Condition (GAEC 7) after severely disrupted autumn planting seasons is very frustrating for farmers.
Similarly, the requirement under Good Agricultural and Environmental Condition (GAEC 6) to have a grassland lie-back when grazing forage/ catch crops with livestock has now totally phased out the sustainable practice of integrating livestock into cropping systems. This should be corrected.
That any implementation of Good Agricultural and Environmental Condition (GAEC 2) should be postponed with a further derogation provided to Member States to allow additional analysis. This derogation should be available annually to Member States to the end of the current Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). programme.
That a continuation of the derogation from Good Agricultural and Environmental Condition (GAEC 7) requirements of the three-crop rule and a review of crop diversification requirements should also take place in 2025.
Name of person primarily responsible for lobbying on this activity
Francie Gorman IFA President, Tadhg Buckley IFA Director of Policy, Joe Sweeney IFA Donegal Chair
Did any Designated Public Official(DPO) or former Designated Public Official(DPO) carry out lobbying activities on your behalf in relation to this return? You must include yourself, and answer Yes, if you are a current DPO or a DPO at any time in the past. (What is a Designated Public Official?)
No
Did you manage or direct a grassroots campaign?
No
Was this lobbying done on behalf of a client?
No
Mass communications
Submission All Senators
Submission All TDs
Submission All MEPs
Lobbying activity
The following activities occurred for this specific Subject Matter Area.
Informal communication (2-5)
Designated public officials lobbied
The following DPOs were lobbied during this return period on this specific Subject Matter Area. These DPOs were involved in at least one of the Lobbying Activities listed above, but not necessarily all of them.
As returns are specific to a Subject Matter Area the above Lobbying Activities may be associated with multiple returns.
Amii McKeever
Adviser to Minister (Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine)
Charlie McConalogue
Minister (Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine)
Diarmuid Lynch
Special Adviser (Department of the Taoiseach)
Micheál Martin
Tánaiste and Minister (Department of Foreign Affairs)
Paul Savage
Assistant Secretary (Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine)