The €17m in funding allocated to the Sheep Welfare Scheme will allow the scheme continue into 2021. It had been due to end this year.

Last year €16.8m was paid to 18,594 farmers, so the 2021 pot will be enough to cover the existing participants and a provision for new entrants.

On Wednesday, Minister of State Pippa Hackett said a €100,000 feasibility study on the wool market was also planned.

For the purposes of the Sheep Welfare Scheme, new entrants have been defined in the past as those who have not already participated and have applied for a herd number in the previous calendar year or an existing herd owner who has not held or traded in sheep for a two-year period up to 31 October preceding the scheme year.

The make-up of the scheme whereby participants already have to opt in on an annual basis and continue with the measures they initially selected on joining the scheme means rolling the scheme over to 2021 is likely to be a straightforward process.