Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue was pressed on the level of drawdown of grant aid for installing solar panels under TAMS.

The suggestion was made by Fine Gael TD and former Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed, in a parliamentary question, regarding whether a review had been carried out on the effectiveness of TAMS.

Deputy Creed questioned whether the Department envisaged changes to the eligibility and technical criteria involved with the scheme, with a view to increasing participation.

When asked for his views, Minister McConalogue said that there were no changes to the TAMS eligibility and technical criteria proposed at this time.

To date, 79 applications have received grant aid in excess of €675,500 the Minister said, adding that some 172 applications for solar panels have been approved under the scheme.

It was revealed in the budget earlier this week that TAMS would be carried over into 2022, with the return of the solar panel grant.