Pressure is growing on Minister for Agriculture Simon Coveney to announce details of the GLAS (new REPS) and TAMS schemes.

Calls are being made for the Minister to submit the proposed schemes to Brussels for EU approval and to open the schemes for applications by early autumn. It’s now three months since he announced preliminary details of these and the other Rural Development Programme (RDP) schemes. Consultation with the farm organisations and other stakeholders on the schemes has finished.

An early start is urgent as there is already a backlog of farmers waiting to join. Almost 13,000 farmers finished REPS 4 contracts last December and most are looking to join a new scheme. A further 17,000 farmers will finish REPS 4 next December. Opening GLAS to applications from 1 September would give farmers and planners sufficient time to master the new scheme and allow participants’ five-year contracts to start rolling on 1 January next.

Regarding TAMS 11, the Irish Farmers Journal has received queries from many farmers who are planning to invest in better farm facilities - including for milk production – but who need information on the new scheme before going ahead. Farmers applying for lending are unable to tell their banks if they will apply for or qualify for grant aid in the scheme.

Minister Coveney can open the schemes ahead of EU Commission approval - but could face having to make messy amendments to the schemes or forego some EU funding. The approval process is likely to take one month after the proposed schemes are submitted.

IFA president Eddie Downey yesterday said early implementation of the schemes was necessary to help tackle the income crisis on beef farms caused by the collapse in prices. “The details of GLAS payment rates and of the conditions for the different measures must be made known immediately and discussed,” he said. “The Minister has to ensure that the scheme is workable and attracts farmers to join.”