DAFM: Report on ACRES review at 'advanced stage'
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has said that a report on the review of the Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES) is at "an advanced stage".
In October, then Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue announced that a review of the €1.5 billion agri-environmental scheme would be undertaken by the department.
The scheme, which has been the subject of strong criticism from farm organisations due to delays with payments to farmers, is a major part of Ireland’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) Strategic Plan.
"The review of ACRES, as announced at the end of October 2024, is being undertaken by the department," a spokesperson for DAFM said.
"It has included meetings with farming bodies, advisory bodies, and the ACRES Co-operation Project (CP) teams in order to ascertain their experience of the scheme to date.
"A report on the review, which is at an advanced stage of preparation, will be submitted to the Minister [for agriculture Martin Heydon] for his consideration," they added.
According to the latest available information from DAFM, a total of just over €448 million had been paid to ACRES participants by Monday, April 14.
Of that total, €200.4 million is in respect of participation in the scheme in 2024, while €247.8 million relates to participation in 2023.
Advance payments in respect of scheme participation in 2024 have still to be made to 7,660 ACRES participants across Tranches 1 and 2.
Of these participants, 1,850 are also awaiting their balancing payment in respect of 2023, as that must be paid before the 2024 advance payment may be made to them.
A total of 1,850 farmers have yet to receive their final payments for 2023. Of these, 1,556 have already received an interim payment of either €4,000 or €5,000, respectively.
DAFM said that in many instances this will cover the entire payment due.
Minister of State at the department of agriculture Michael Healy-Rae recently told Agriland that the scoring system for ACRES may need to be “overhauled”.
He said that lessons have to be learned from what has happened with payments for farmers under the agri-environmental scheme.
“Whatever mistakes, whatever has gone wrong, whatever way the scoring for ACRES is so problematic that they can’t literally get people paid, well if it’s wrong, it has to be overhauled and it obviously is wrong,” he said.
