Commitment to Make All Glas Payment by End of April Must Be Honoured

IFA Deputy President Richard Kennedy said delays in GLAS payments to around 4,000 farmers are totally unacceptable and he called on the Minister for Agriculture, Michael Creed to get all payments out without any further delay.

At a meeting of the Farmers’ Charter of Rights Monitoring Committee in Portlaoise today, a commitment was given by the Department of Agriculture that all GLAS payments would be made by the end of April.

Speaking following the meeting, Richard Kennedy said that the debacle of GLAS payments has set a very bad tone for farmers’ confidence in the payments system.

“The delay has caused severe cashflow difficulties on the thousands of farms affected and the commitment given to make payments by the end of April must be delivered on as otherwise the credibility of the scheme will be in question by many farmers,” Richard Kennedy said.

Also at the Charter meeting, Richard Kennedy welcomed the Department of Agriculture plan to provide dedicated support services to assist farmers in making online BPS applications online in some of their Department offices and other locations throughout the country.

The Deputy President said it is important that farmers are given all help necessary to make online applications ahead of the requirement for all applications to be made online next year. He said farmers who apply online can also benefit from pre-checking, instant confirmation of receipt of application, reduced application errors and greater accuracy, online maps, text alert from the Department, payment on time within deadlines and linkages to other schemes.

Richard Kennedy said issues with delayed GLAS payments preventing BPS online applications must also be sorted out.