Payments subject to 0.9% cuts

All Single Payment Scheme balancing payments issued since early December were subject to linear reductions of 0.9%.

Agriculture Minister Simon Coveney has clarified in the Dáil that the reductions were necessary because budgets for the 2011 and 2012 schemes were marginally exceeded, requiring a total 0.9% linear reduction (0.45% for each year) in 2012, to ensure that the national ceilings for the scheme for the years in question were respected.

Mr Coveney was responding to a question from Willie O’Dea.