Upwards of €13.5m in BP Scheme refunds

MORE than €13million in Basic Payment (BP) Scheme refunds will be reimbursed to some 100,000 Irish farmers.

The announcement was made last week by former

Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed ( below, right), and it concerns deductions made under the 2018 BP Scheme. The refund, which totals €13.35million, is being carried out in line with EU regulations.

‘‘I am pleased to confirm that these payments are now being reimbursed to eligible farmers,” Deputy Creed said. “These payments will bring the total paid to Irish farmers under the 2019 Basic Payment Scheme to over €1.192 billion.”

The Financial Discipline Mechanism implemented by EU States includes a monetary deduction from some direct payments to create an EU Crisis Reserve in the event of major crises affecting the agricultural sector.

In the case of the 2018 financial year, the deduction was 1.4 per cent. When it goes unused or is not full utilised during the financial year, it is refunded to farmers the following year.