ICSA president Sean McNamara has welcomed the agreement reached on an updated Farmers' Charter of Rights. Speaking after the meeting held in Dublin on Tuesday (July 2), Mr McNamara said, "The negotiations around the formation of this Farmers' Charter have been lengthy and fraught at times. However, I am pleased that we have now reached an agreement that provides much-needed security for farmers regarding timelines for scheme applications, scheme payments, inspections, and appeals," he said.

Mr McNamara said that ICSA's concerns about delayed ACRES payments being classified as overpayments were directly addressed by the Minister during the meeting. "The minister acknowledged that there is an obligation on the Department 'to make recoupments in the cases of any overpayment arising from interim payments at the first opportunity.' This means that because ACRES interim payments were classified as overpayments, their system will look to claw back interim monies paid out from any scheme payment that falls due to a farmer.

However, the Minister added that he has asked his department 'to engage positively with any farmer that contacts them and show flexibility in cases of financial hardship.' This is crucial, and I encourage any concerned farmer to contact the Department. Doing so will help protect their payments from other schemes and ensure they receive the full payments as they come due."

Among the other guarantees secured for farmers are:

• Payments Schedule:
  • Farm payments will return to the traditional schedule in 2024.
  • ANC payments will resume the third week of September.
• Scheme Payment Deadlines:
  • If deadlines are missed, the Charter Monitoring Committee will convene to resolve issues.
• Development of Schemes:
  • The Department has given a commitment to fully engage with farm organisations on the development of new schemes and any subsequent changes to scheme terms and conditions.
• Inspection Improvements:
  • Inspections, for the most part, will be announced in advance.
  • Inspectors must provide a preliminary report before leaving the farm.
• Monitoring and Accountability:
  • With the agreement on the Farmers' Charter reached, the focus will now shift to the Charter's Monitoring Committee, of which the ICSA is a member. This will allow us to hold the Department accountable for all the commitments they have made.