At a recent Farm Advisory Service training day, it emerged that there is still uncertainty whether there will be a National Reserve available to farmers for 2018.

A Department of Agriculture spokesperson stated: “A decision regarding the National Reserve for 2018 will be considered following an analysis of the funding available when all eligible applicants under the 2017 National Reserve have been catered for.”

In more positive news, they did confirm that the Young Farmers Scheme (YFS) will be available to young trained farmers for 2018. This scheme allows young farmers to receive a 25% top-up on their BPS payment for a duration of five years. This would equate to a €50 to €60/ha top-up.

When questioned as to the current situation with 2017 YFS payments, the Department confirmed that it is likely that payments will be delayed.

“There will be delayed payments for the YFS similar to those in 2016,” a Department spokesperson said.

This could see some young farmers waiting until January or February before payments are made.

Inspections

The delayed payments will, in part, be due to inspections which are currently ongoing.

Five per cent of applicants will be inspected, with inspections focusing on land eligibility and the control of the holding.

These inspections are not intended to catch people out, the Department stressed. However, they are to see if the young farmer is involved in the day-to-day management of the farm. Questions such as when the last TB test for the herd was undertaken are asked, as well as simple management questions around inputs purchased for the farm and when livestock may have been sold from the farm.

In relation to farmers in a partnership, participants are being checked to ensure that the BPS is going to a joint bank account and the bank account is being actively used. A total of 9,950 applications were made under the YFS, with 1,630 of these first-time applications.