Smith stands firm over waste scheme deadline
He said it was not accurate to compare schemes in the south and in Northern Ireland, where a scheme extension to March 3 was granted. The minister said the scheme in the North offers a lower level of grant aid, for slurry storage only, and he understood an extension will be considered only for applications in exceptional circumstances, but the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development in Northern Ireland had not received express European Commission clearance for this extension.
IFA rural development chairman Tom Turley said up to 10,000 farmers will have difficulty completing their work by year-end, and the minister’s refusal to budge on the deadline will lead to a huge loss of jobs in rural areas. Mr Smith said the deadline is condition of the EU state aid approval for the scheme, and the European Commission has reaffirmed that it expects Ireland to respect this deadline strictly.
