Longford TD Joe Flaherty is welcoming today's announcement that the agri-environmental ACRES scheme is now being approved for all applicants.
Announcing the news this afternoon Minister Charlie McConologue said ACRES applicants will hear further from his Department, in the coming days, as the formal approval letters are issued.
He said the message for now is that farmers should wait until they receive their letters before contacting either the Department or their advisor.
Deputy Joe Flaherty says the scheme will be of particular benefit to smaller farms with marginal land and he is very glad to see it being extended.
'We have a lot of small farmers operating marginal operations previously embraced to environmental schemes very enthusiastically.
This scheme was majorly oversubscribed with a major fear that a lot of our local farmers were going to miss out on a scheme that can offer an annual payment of up to 7 and half thousand.
I am delighted that the Minister for Agriculture has announced that all 46 thousand applicants including many in the Shannonside region will be included in the scheme so it is very much a case of farmers shout it and the government listened.'
