€4.8m of EU aid for NI

Initial indications from Defra are that NI’s allocation of the EU Exceptional Adjustment Aid for livestock vulnerable sectors will be €4.8m, DAERA Minister Michelle McIlveen has said.

Speaking at the Stormont Assembly on Tuesday, the minister maintained that the level of aid represented an enhanced allocation in recognition of the extreme difficulties faced by farmers here. The UK’s allocation of the €350m EU Exceptional Adjustment Aid package is around €30m.

The package was announced in July and is part of a wider €500m EU package, which includes the €150m voluntary milk supply reduction scheme.

The minister said that she was still discussing with DAERA officials and industry stakeholders how the NI envelope would be used. “Rather than it being put out per head, it may be something that we will want to look at for a number of schemes which will maximise impact right across the farming sector,” she said.

She also confirmed that at least one activity from a list of options from the European Commission that relate to reducing, or not increasing production, has to be selected in the measures.

The European Commission must be notified about how the money will be spent by 30 November 2016. The deadline for spending the money is 30 September 2017.

SAF online by 2020

All farmers who are intending to claim subsidy payments will have to submit single applications forms (SAF) online from 2020 onwards, head of DAERA digital services Paul McGurnaghan told MLAs last week.

DAERA has previously said that 100% of SAF will have to be online by 2018, but the aim now appears to be 80% online by that date.