The IFA is angry at the decision by the Department of Agriculture not to introduce sheep fencing and tillage measures in the second tranche of TAMS II, which got underway this week.

“Unless Minister for Agriculture Simon Coveney reverses this decision, the new measures will be delayed until the third tranche and approvals will therefore not be issued before the autumn.

“That means no sheep fencing or investment work on tillage farms will take place in 2016,” rural development chairman Flor McCarthy said.

“IFA has been told by the EU Commission recently that Ireland could implement the additional measures in advance of formal approval of the RDP ammendments,” he said.

“Minister Coveney must allow the measures to proceed now. That would give sheep farmers an opportunity to carry out fencing from early autumn and allow tillage farmers make timely investments,” he said.