Want to build an underpass? Not with TAMS grants you can't

The construction of underpasses is not currently available under the TAMS suite of measures and the Minister for Agriculture, Michael Creed has said he has no plans to introduce this measure at this time.

The Minister was responding to a parliamentary question from Fine Gael deputy Brendan Griffin recently, who asked the Minister to consider co-funding a cattle underpass grant scheme with the Department of Transport.

This, he said, was in order to keep cattle off national, secondary and regional roads. An underpass can be extremely helpful on fragmented farms and many farmers affected by new roads opting for an underpass to ensure they have ease of access to land. The exclusion of underpasses from TAMS II was criticised by many famers.

The Minister said that the introduction of such a measure would require a formal amendment to Ireland’s RDP for 2014 – 2020 and approval by the EU Commission – which he said he has no plans to do so.

Also Read: TAMS II – What It Is and How To Apply

“Last year a suite of six new measures were announced under TAMS II. These measures were launched under the new RDP 2014 – 2020 and are co-funded under the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD).”

Under the scheme support is provided for the following measures:

Young Farmers Capital Investment Scheme.
Dairy Equipment Scheme.
Organic Capital Investment Scheme.
Animal Welfare, Safety and Nutrient Storage Scheme.
Low Emission Slurry Spreading.
Pig and Poultry Investment Scheme.

Meanwhile, full approval has issued to 2,400 applicants under TAMS II, the Minister announced earlier this week.

This represents 33% of farmers who have applied to the three tranches of the scheme. Some 7,100 farmers have applied to TAMS, the Minister has confirmed.

“The number of applications received under the scheme was over 2,900 applications in the first tranche, over 2,200 in the second tranche and 2,000 in the third tranche.”