Expenditure for the Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme (TAMS) is now running at €1m a week, according to the Department of Agriculture. The Department acknowledged that there had been some concern that the entire allocation of the €395m would not be spent but that funding had since increased.
Expenditure for the Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme (TAMS) is now running at €1m a week, according to the Department of Agriculture.
The Department acknowledged that there had been some concern that the entire allocation of the €395m would not be spent but that funding had since increased.
There had been claims made by the IFA that an overall underspend in in the Rural Development Programme (RDP) was likely.
In denial
“Minister Creed appears to be in denial about the fact that, as the situation stands, not all funding will be used. IFA has identified underspend across a number of schemes, in particular in TAMS,” IFA rural development chair Joe Brady said.
The Department did add that they had some concerns regarding the number of approved planning applications that had expired or were on the cusp of expiration.
They added that a new system had been implemented to help calculate remaining funds correctly.
“The new one-year approval system, introduced in January 2017 will assist with the accurate assessment of outstanding commitments,” the Department stated.
“TAMS continues to open to new applicants with significant interest shown and I am working on the assumption that the entire allocation will be fully spent over the lifetime of the scheme.”
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