Ombudsman rules in favour of farmer in Department dispute
A farmer made an official complaint to the Ombudsman after the Department of Agriculture refused to apply a farmer-rate to his forestry grant as the DVO had delayed issuing a herd number.
The Forest Service decided to apply a non-farmer rate to a forestry grant, which meant that the farmer involved failed to qualify for the remaining three years of the grant. The Forest Service is a section within the Department of Agriculture.
The Forest Service refused to give the farmer rate as the man did not have an active herd number at the time.
However, upon examination by the Ombudsman, it transpired that the core issue was the fact that the local District Veterinary Office (DVO) delayed issuing a new herd number by 11 months.
ADVERTISEMENT
The DVO accepted responsibility for the delay. If the man had received the herd number without the delay he would have been eligible to get the farmer rate of the grant.
“The Ombudsman was satisfied that the company suffered the adverse effect of not qualifying for the grant because of undue delay caused by another arm of the Department. For this reason the Ombudsman asked the Department to review its decision,” Ombudsman Peter Tyndall said in his report.
Review
As a result, the Department agreed to review its decision and the man qualified for the farmer rate of the grant, making him eligible to claim annual payments for the remaining three years of the 20-year forestry grant.
This content is available to digital subscribers and loyalty code users only. Sign in to your account, use the code or subscribe to get unlimited access.
The reader loyalty code gives you full access to the site from when you enter it until the following Wednesday at 9pm. Find your unique code on the back page of Irish Country Living every week.
CODE ACCEPTED
You have full access to the site until next Wednesday at 9pm.
CODE NOT VALID
Please try again or contact support.
The Forest Service decided to apply a non-farmer rate to a forestry grant, which meant that the farmer involved failed to qualify for the remaining three years of the grant. The Forest Service is a section within the Department of Agriculture.
The Forest Service refused to give the farmer rate as the man did not have an active herd number at the time.
However, upon examination by the Ombudsman, it transpired that the core issue was the fact that the local District Veterinary Office (DVO) delayed issuing a new herd number by 11 months.
The DVO accepted responsibility for the delay. If the man had received the herd number without the delay he would have been eligible to get the farmer rate of the grant.
“The Ombudsman was satisfied that the company suffered the adverse effect of not qualifying for the grant because of undue delay caused by another arm of the Department. For this reason the Ombudsman asked the Department to review its decision,” Ombudsman Peter Tyndall said in his report.
Review
As a result, the Department agreed to review its decision and the man qualified for the farmer rate of the grant, making him eligible to claim annual payments for the remaining three years of the 20-year forestry grant.
If you would like to speak to a member of our team, please call us on 01-4199525.
Link sent to your email address
We have sent an email to your address. Please click on the link in this email to reset your password. If you can't find it in your inbox, please check your spam folder. If you can't find the email, please call us on 01-4199525.
ENTER YOUR LOYALTY CODE:
The reader loyalty code gives you full access to the site from when you enter it until the following Wednesday at 9pm. Find your unique code on the back page of Irish Country Living every week.
SHARING OPTIONS