Specific Details
Sligo IFA Budget 2025 Priorities
Intended results
To highlight area's of concern by submitting a Pre-Budget 2025 Submission as requested by the Minister for Agriculture, Food, and the Marine.
To seek support for the sustainable development of the agriculture and farming sector
To highlight that difficult weather conditions, high input prices and declining output prices have driven farm incomes to unsustainable levels. Recent surveys show that the average farm income in Ireland is below €20,000, the lowest level in over a decade. Targeted measures are needed to address this income crisis.
To propose the following measures to address the income crisis
Tillage Survival Package -€250/ha (2024-28); €400/ha (new land).
€20m scheme extended and total supports of €300/cow (on all suckler cows) delivered.
€30/ewe per breeding ewe (€40/ewe for hill ewes).
Beef Calf from Dairy Herds Scheme - €100/calf.
Beef Sustainability Scheme - €100/head for cattle aged one - two.
Areas of Natural constraint (ANC) - increase of €50m to €300m; higher rate/ha and increased eligible area.
Horticulture - Support to alleviate cost of production (specific supports for Mushroom and Potato sectors).
Organics - Continued new entrant supports, increased marketing.
Pigs and Poultry - extra Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme (TAMS) support and animal health measures.
Establish a Forestry Development Agency and Ash Dieback Scheme.
Aquaculture - Temporary Crisis Supports Scheme.
Equine - Financial support for breeders; Department of Agriculture, Food, and the Marine (DAFM) control of horse registration and movements.
Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme (TAMS) - Swift approvals; Increased investment ceilings and reference costs. Add to eligible items - dribble bars, rubber mats, hydraulic crushers, safety cages, quad gates.
VAT58 rebate - inclusion of additional milking points, calf feeders, robotic scrapers and water troughs needed.
Other Funding Priorities
Farm Safety - measures to improve farm safety must be prioritised in TAMS and other supports.
PRSI - Class A employer rate @ 8.8% increase to €500 per week to align with minimum wage increases. The rate of Class S PRSI must be retained at existing levels.
VAT on Vaccines - 0% VAT rate for non-oral animal medicines and vaccines like what is in place on oral products.
Animal Health - support to implement Deer management proposals.
Funding for - BVD, Johnes and IBR programmes for maintaining and increasing the health status of the national herd (including TB, BVD, IBR Johnes) and delivering the key objectives on animal health and welfare.
Cost of Employment - supports to alleviate the rising cost of employment on farm and review of general employment permit salary requirement.
Funding must also - address the significant income loss suffered by farmers whose lands were designated in prior years without appropriate compensation.
Farm Finance
To highlight that access to farm finance and working capital is paramount for farmers across all enterprises. Farmers must have easy access to sufficient low-cost funding, such as SBCI lending, to allow their business to trade efficiently.
To propose that, as the accountability requirements of the financial sector increase, funding opportunities for agriculture must be secured.
Climate Action and Renewable Energy Support
To highlight that substantial additional funding, independent of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), is required to support farmers in achieving emissions reduction and water quality objectives. In addition to strengthened agri-environment supports, a fair share of the Climate and Nature Fund must be ringfenced for farmers and directed towards on-farm interventions and diversification activities (with higher rates afforded to hill farmers and those operating on designated lands)
To propose that;
All farmers must have the option to join the Agri-Environment Scheme.
Agri-Climate rural Environment Scheme (ACRES) - payment delays to be sorted; only agreed interim repayment schedules; swift Non-Productive Investments approvals needed (up to €10,500 per year promised - Department of Agriculture, Food, and the Marine (DAFM) failed in Year 1 and 2).
70% grant aid (available to all) for manure /slurry storage facilities; slurry separation equipment; Solar; Wind energy and Anaerobic digestion (AD) investment (independent of TAMS).
Liming Scheme extended - increased rates and allowances.
New Watercourse Fencing Scheme established - 100% cost covered on Natura 2000 sites; 75% on all other lands.
Free Rainwater and Nutrient management Plan for all farmers.
Implementing Bio-methane Strategy - grant aid on farm investment and guaranteed index linked fee-in tariff rate.
Increased support for on farm micro=generation and battery usage to manage energy supply/usage dynamic.
Fast tracked and streamlined planning process for flooding works and investments that enhance slurry storage on farms.
Development levies removed for environmental investments.
No on-farm usage restrictions should apply to any on-farm energy generation support.
Exemption should apply for ESB Grid connection fees.
legislative security that environmental actions (e.g. rewetting) will be, at all times, applied only on a voluntary basis.
VAT exemption for farm equipment/investments that seek to lower emissions (e.g. Low Emission Slurry Spreading (LESS)), improve water quality and/or biodiversity. Accelerated capital allowance for investments in the bio-methane supply chain.
Reduction of excise duty on hydrated vegetable oil (HVO).
Forestry classified as agriculture on all farms for Capital Acquisitions Tax (CAT) ag relief purposes.
Forgotten Farmers Scheme
To highlight that a Forgotten Farmers Scheme is urgently needed. they should be eligible to apply for the following and/or equivalent schemes
Complementary Income Support for Young Farmers.
National Reserve.
Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme (TAMS)/Young Farmers Capital Investment Scheme 9access to an increased 60% grant aid).
Residential Zoned Land Tax - Time for Delivery
To highlight that an annual 3% tax on market value will result in the forced sale of intergenerational land - tax far exceeds income generating potential.
To highlight that submissions from hundreds of farmers to local authorities and An Bord Pleanála have been rejected.
To propose that an exemption for all actively farmed land is needed immediately.
To stress that legislative change is required, not political pandering.
Taxation Reliefs and support to Agriculture
Stock Relief - essential that Agri Stock relief is extended beyond 31st December 2024.
Flat Rate Refund - must be increased to reflect high input costs and lower output prices.
Forestry - Tax reliefs required to support forestry sector.
Excise duty relief - required on Agri Diesel.
Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) - Tyre Disposal Scheme. Farmers should not incur costs for agri-tyre disposal.
Definition - around agriculture/farming within taxation must be expanded to encompass new diversified farming systems.
90% Agricultural Relief - from Capital Acquisitions Tax (CAT) with Category A threshold (parent to child) increased from €335,000 to €500,000. In order to ensure the relief is for genuine farmers the retention period on purchased land should be increased to 15 years, with any period of lease to an active farmer included.
Stamp Duty Rate - agricultural land should be removed from the commercial definition rate of 7.5% and revised in line with the residential stamp duty charge of 1%, up to €1m, and 2% thereafter.
Fair Deal Scheme & Support for Older People - 5Yr land/business transfer clause is reduced to maximum of 3Yrs; new Home Support Scheme introduced; Workplace Pension Scheme extended to include farmers
Pensions - recipients of Farm Assist should receive credited social insurance contributions for pension purposes
Frank Feighan
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Marc MacSharry
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Marian Harkin
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Martin Kenny
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)