Budget 2027 a ‘missed opportunity’ on generational renewal
Macra has criticised the government’s "failure" to fund a pilot succession scheme in Budget 2027 as a “missed opportunity to show real ambition on generational renewal”.
However, the organisation welcomed the removal of the three-year requirement for succession farm partnerships, a change it called for in its pre-budget submission.
The young farmers group had argued that the requirement was acting as a barrier rather than an incentive to farm transfer.
Its removal will give farm families "greater flexibility" to progress succession when both generations are ready, rather than being "constrained by an arbitrary timeline", the organisation said.
Macra president Josephine O’Neill stated: “Removing the three-year requirement is a sensible and necessary change.
“Macra had clearly identified that this rule was creating a barrier to succession rather than encouraging it.
“We welcome its removal, but ultimately this is a policy correction to a problem that should never have existed.”
O'Neill added that a succession policy should make it easier for families to transfer farms and responsibility to the next generation, not "put obstacles in their way".
Succession
Macra has also welcomed the increase in the succession farm partnership tax credit from €5,000 to €10,000, which the organisation hopes will provide a stronger incentive for farm families to actively plan for succession.
O’Neill said: “Doubling the tax credit is a positive step.
“We hope the increased support will encourage more farm families to start the succession process and give young farmers greater certainty about their future in the sector.”
However, Macra expressed disappointment that Budget 2027 failed to commit funding for a pilot succession scheme.
Macra said it has long called for a dedicated scheme to support the transition of farm management and responsibility from the older farmer to the younger generation.
With the potential for such a scheme to be delivered under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) post-2027, Macra had called for Budget 2027 to fund a pilot that supported the development of the model ahead of the next CAP.
The Macra president said: “This budget was an opportunity for government to show real ambition on farm succession, and it has fallen short.
“A pilot succession scheme would have allowed us to develop a practical model for transferring management, responsibility and decision-making to the next generation ahead of the next CAP.”
Progress
According to Macra, the Budget 2027 changes represent "positive progress", but stressed that addressing Ireland’s succession and generational renewal challenge will require a much more comprehensive approach.
O'Neill said: “This budget was an opportunity for government to prove that generational renewal is more than a talking point.
“They have failed to take it. Removing an unnecessary rule and increasing an existing tax credit are welcome, but they cannot be the height of our ambition.
“If government is genuinely serious about generational renewal, it needs to stop talking about the problem and start delivering the measures that will actually transfer responsibility, opportunity and the future of Irish farming to the next generation," the Macra president said.
