Closing Date for New Sheep Welfare Scheme Should Be Extended
IFA National Sheep Chairman John Lynskey has called on the Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed to extend the closing date for the new €10 per ewe sheep welfare scheme by two weeks out to February 14th.
He said applications are going well, with more than 13,000 in to-date. However, John Lynskey said this is a unique opportunity to maximise the number of applicants into a positive sheep scheme that is worth up to €1,300 to the average flock owner.
John Lynskey said Minister Creed and the Department of Agriculture need to be targeting more than 30,000 sheep farmers and 2.5m ewes for the scheme. He said IFA worked hard and secured funding of €25m in Budget 2017 which is adequate to cover all sheep farmers with ewes.
The IFA sheep farmer leader said there is a very positive reaction to the scheme from farmers on the ground and we need this additional time frame to maximise applications. He said both lowland and hill sheep farmers are very interested in the scheme and can see the real benefits. In addition the tasks and options under the scheme provide good flexibility to accommodate a large number of applicants from all areas.
John Lynskey called on all sheep farmers with ewes to make an application for the new €10 per ewe scheme without delay, saying this was a unique opportunity that should not be missed.
