‘I have just received a letter from the Department of Agriculture to advise me that there will be a reduction to my Single Farm Payment this year. It appears that the Department carried out a full cross-compliance ground inspection without my knowledge or consent, and are going to apply reductions to the area claimed as a result of that inspection. What are my rights?’

At the outset, it is worth highlighting that the terms and conditions of the 2014 Single Payment Scheme (SPS – the new SFP) gives the Department greater autonomy in relation to unannounced inspections than they had under the 2013 scheme.

The terms and conditions of the 2013 and 2014 schemes provide that in submitting an application, applicants agree to permit officials or agents of the Department to carry out on-farm inspections with or without prior notice at any reasonable time. However, a difference appears between the 2013 and 2014 schemes in relation to unannounced inspections.

2013 T&Cs

The 2013 terms and conditions provided that where the inspector fails to make contact with the applicant on arrival for an unannounced inspection, as occurred in your case, he should have returned again before carrying out the inspection. The terms provide that in the case of a full cross-compliance inspection, if nobody is present at the second visit, the inspector should have rang to inform you that you had been selected for inspection and that the part of the inspection relating to food hygiene, TSE and welfare would be carried out there and then.

You should have been given a choice of allowing the full inspection to be completed in your absence or of having the remaining elements of the inspection completed within 48 hours. If the inspector was unable to contact you, he was entitled to proceed with the unannounced elements of the inspection, ie food hygiene, TSE and welfare. However, he was not entitled to proceed with the other aspects of the inspection such as land eligibility. Written notification indicating the nature of the call, contact details and confirming that a return visit will be made within 48 hours to complete the inspection should have been left at your address.

2014 T&Cs

The 2014 terms and conditions provide that in the case of inspections, where inspections are not notified, the inspector will explain on arrival the inspection procedure and satisfy himself that the applicant or his/her representative fully understands it. If the applicant cannot be present, he/she can be represented by a person of his/her choice. There is no provision to allow the inspection to be postponed until the applicant is present, as was the case under the 2013 SFP scheme.

EU legislation

From an EU legislative viewpoint, Article 27 of Commission Regulation (EC) 1122/ 2009 allows unannounced inspections to be carried out where giving advance notice may jeopardise the purposes of the inspection.

Appeal procedure

The normal procedure is for the Department to send out a letter notifying you of the result of the inspection and give you 21 days to apply for a review to the district inspector. I would recommend getting a copy of your SPS file from the Department under the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act, so that you know the precise case being made against you. Once you receive the FOI files, you should carefully review same and put together an application for review based on facts and documentation to support your contentions.

If the decision following review is unfavourable, it is then open to you to appeal the decision to the agriculture appeals office within three months of the decision of the district inspector.

Once the oral hearing has concluded, the appeals officer normally issues a decision within four to six weeks either allowing the appeal in full, partially allowing it or rejecting the appeal.

If the appeal is rejected, the applicant can appeal to the director of the agriculture appeals office where there has been a mistake made in relation to the law or facts of the case.

The applicant may also apply to the High Court to revise a decision on a point of law or apply for judicial review of the decision where they feel they have been unfairly treated. Very strict time limits apply to appeals to the High Court so you should contact your solicitor as soon as you receive the decision should you wish to go down the High Court route.