An MEP has called on the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) to withdraw sanctions imposed on the direct payments of Kerry farmers whose lands were burnt from wildfires during the summer.

Ireland South MEP Seán Kelly noted that DAFM has frozen the payment of Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) entitlements to several Kerry farmers whose lands were impacted by the Killarney National Park wildfire earlier this year.

Discussing this issue, Kelly said:

“To penalise farmers whose lands have burned through circumstances outside of their control is totally unfair and illogical.

“Some leniency must be afforded to those farmers whose lands adjoin the National Park and were circumstantially impacted by the blaze,” he added.

According to a Garda Síochána investigation into the incident, no evidence of criminality was found, and burning for land clearance appeared to be ruled out.

Stressing the importance of the BPS, not only to farmers, but also to the overall rural economy, the MEP said:

“These farmers need this support now more than ever, as they attempt to restore their livelihoods and to recover their lands post-fire.”

Kelly said he has written to both Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue and European Commissioner for Agriculture Janusz Wojciechowski about the matter “in the hope that these sanctions will be withdrawn”.

“Although parts of Europe have been devastated by wildfires in recent months, this heavy-handed approach does not seem to apply anywhere else,” the MEP claimed.

“Instead of imposing penalties and sanctions where they are not justified, we need to focus on implementing the conservation measures necessary to ensure that this never happens again,” he concluded.