Changes to EU rules on co-financing farm payments mean farmers could be in line for an annual increase of €225m in farm schemes. The EU has committed to providing €2.45bn in Pillar II funds to Ireland. These funds, used to provide schemes such as GLAS and ANC, are further topped up by national governments.

In the last CAP, Ireland provided 47% of the money with the EU providing 53%. The EU’s contribution will drop to 43% with Ireland expected to provide 57%.

Indications are that the national exchequer could have to provide an extra €1.3bn to ensure the maximum draw down of EU funds. This would increase the annual Pillar II budget from €590m to €815m.

However, the EU has indicated that it is willing to provide up to 80% of the funds for agri-environmental schemes.

Countries seeking to minimise their contributions could prioritise these schemes.

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