The Irish Natura and Hill Farmers Association (INHFA) have warned how the shambolic roll-
out of the Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES) will impact uptake of future agri-
environment schemes.
Speaking on this national vice-president John Joe Fitzgerald detailed “how the painfully slow
roll-out of payments and associated support measures will not be forgotten by farmers
when it comes to agri-environmental schemes in future CAP programmes.”
In addressing ongoing concerns with ACRES the INHFA vice-president stated “how the entire
process (from inception through to where we currently are with thousands of farmers still
awaiting payments and clarity on their habitat scorecards) has been an unmitigated
disaster.”
We must he continued “remember that farmers were sold a scheme that would support
them in delivering on the Governments ambition to address issues around climate change
and biodiversity loss. However, for many farmers this promise turned into a nightmare as
the Department has continued to miss payment deadlines leaving many in a precarious
financial position.”
Every day there are he added “farmers and their spouses ringing our office crying down the
phone because the Department have yet to pay them and can’t even give an exact date for
when they will be paid. For many of these farmers they have loans to pay which they are not
able to do, this in turn is impacting on their credit rating and the potential to secure future
loans.
It is Fitzgerald stressed “vital that Department staff recognise the impact this is having and
appreciate that while they talk in terms of the number of farmers paid and still awaiting
payment, behind those numbers are real people that are hurting, people that they have
failed.”
Beyond the hold up in payments there has also been major issues in the roll-out of critical
support measures through the non- productive investments (NPIs) and landscape actions
(LAs). These measures were he stated “designed to support farmers on improving the
habitat and the overall habitat scores. Unfortunately, with many requests under the NPIs
turned down and commonage farmers still awaiting the roll-out of the LAs we have to
question if the Department have the ability to deliver on any aspect of the ACRES CP
Programme.”
As we move into the second half of the ACRES timeline it is Fitzgerald stressed “vital that the
Minister gets on top of this which can be done through an interim payment for all farmers
still awaiting 2023 or the first instalment of their 2024 payment. On the NPIs the
Department need to step back from this process and let the CP Teams assess and sanction
these actions while we need an immediate roll-out of the LAs.”
In concluding the INHFA vice-president warned of the enormous damage done to farmer
trust which will definitely impact on future agri-environment schemes but stressed that “in
the short-term we need to address the many issues currently facing ACRES.”