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The promised new REPS will lean heavily on existing locally led projects and the best elements of GLAS, Minister for Agriculture Dara Calleary has indicated.
The minister said he was “particularly impressed” by some of the early lessons from the locally led schemes run by his new department, adding that GLAS had delivered some really meaningful environmental results.
Responding to a parliamentary question by Galway East Independent TD Seán Canney, Minister Calleary said some elements of the new scheme will be introduced in the transition period between the current CAP and the next CAP.
“I have been very clear that the strong environmental ambition for the sector must be matched by a suitable CAP budget,” he told deputy Canney.
“This will be included in Ireland’s CAP Strategic Plan and we aim to pilot some elements of this in the transitional phase between the CAP programming periods as well as adopting the best elements of our existing agri-environment schemes.”
New measures
However, Minister Calleary said it was important to reflect on what has worked in previous schemes and what hadn’t, when designing new measures.
“There are a number of variables still undecided which mean it’s difficult to be definitive at this stage about the precise details of future schemes. These include agreement on the legislative framework, both transitional and next CAP,” he said.
“We are pressing hard for the earliest possible adoption of the EU regulations to facilitate the operation of schemes during the transitional period as the first priority,” he added.
“This is to provide some certainty until such time as CAP regulations and associated funding arrangements are agreed. As soon as we have this legal certainty, we will provide clarity and engage with all the relevant stakeholders on next steps.”
Funding
Minister Calleary met with farm organisations on Thursday when he convened the first meeting of the Department of Agriculture’s CAP consultative committee.
“I see that forum as being key to the planning for our future policy on these issues,” he said.
He reiterated the programme for government pledge to allocate €1.5bn to the new REPS under the next CAP, which is to be one of three strands of funding for the scheme.
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