DEAR SIR: As chair of the Irish Family Farm Rights Group (IFRG), I wish to congratulate you on the article in a recent edition of the Irish Farmers Journal, written by Pat O’Toole about the likelihood of the front-loading of farm payments under the next CAP.

As you stated in the article, I and others have been campaigning for the front-loading of CAP payments for many years.

I acknowledge that there are a number of ways to achieve the front-loading of payments.

The IFRG has made a detailed submission to the Department of Agriculture on the matter, recommending that there should be a basic payment of at least €300 on average on each of at least the first 32 available hectares of a holding and that there should be an eco scheme, like the old REPs, paying at least another €300 on average on each of at least the first 32 available hectares of a holding.

We are open to debating the matter and believe that the farmer on the ground should have the final say through a ballot of all farmers on all of the payment options available, whether front-loading or otherwise. This ballot should be carried out by the Department before Minister McConologue signs off on any new CAP deal.