IFA hopes for €500m in budget for GLAS, TAMS and other schemes
The IFA’s pre-budget submission reminds the Government these funds are already included in the €2.1bn of EU funding and €1.9bn of national funding agreed in the Rural Development Programme (RDP) for 2014-2020. The issue relates to the timing of the release of funds.
IFA president, Eddie Downey, said: “The key element in our submission is to put the funding in place in this year’s budget to get 30,000 farm families into GLAS, with applications in early 2015, and payments to be made towards the end of 2015.
“We see this as very realistic. While the National Exchequer payments remains the same, it is an increased payment from Europe, but this has already been approved in Brussels. If farmers can see the GLAS payment coming, it will boost optimism in the sector.”
The IFA’s submission, due to be put to the Government later this week, will also call for an allocation of €30m for the TAMS scheme in 2015 to fund on-farm investment programmes across all sectors. It is seeking funding of €52m for the Beef Data and Genomic Scheme to support the vulnerable suckler sector.
“The TAMS funding will get the concrete trucks moving again on farms in rural Ireland,” said Eddie Downey. “We are still seeing huge trading difficulties, particularly in beef, grain and in potatoes where farmers are feeling the pinch.
“The numbers seem to be tightening on the beef side. We are hoping that beef consumption will increase in Europe. That, coupled with discussions in the beef forum, could ease pressure on the sector.”
Mr Downey said despite the difficulties this year, especially on livestock and tillage farms, the sector continues to deliver positive growth in food exports and jobs, which is a real and sustainable return on the Government’s investment in agriculture.
The IFA’s pre-budget submission also contains a number of measures to ease the tax burden on working families and new tax measures to support farm restructuring and income volatility.
The IFA proposes the introduction of a tax deposit scheme to better manage income volatility as a result of weather extremes and product price fluctuations. The IFA is also seeking the introduction of a phased transfer partnership model, providing tax relief to farmholders during the defined period of transfer of viable family farms.
IFA farm business chairman, Tom Doyle said: “The agri-taxation review provides an opportunity to ensure that the taxation system delivers a coherent support for the achievement of the key policy goals for agriculture outlined in Food Harvest 2020.
“These include promoting on-farm investment, encouraging new entrants to farming, increasing land mobility, and improving the overall structure, efficiency and productive capacity of agriculture.”
The IFA wants the retention of the pay and file deadline for self-assessed income tax returns and simplification of tax returns for farmers with low turnover.
