ACRES overpayments – ICMSA say additional options required

Following a meeting with Department of Agriculture Food and the Marine officials in charge of administering the ACRES scheme, ICMSA Deputy President, Eamon Carroll, has called on the Minister to “look again” at the repayment option for those farmers who were given an interim payment and have now exceeded their proposed ACRES payment.

Mr. Carroll, who also chairs his association’s Farm & Rural Affairs Committee, said that the Departmental officials envisage repayment by direct payment to the Department or proportionate reduction of their next scheduled payment. Any other method of repayment, according to the Mr. Carroll, will involve farmers directly contacting the Financial Services section of the Department and agreeing individual repayment arrangements. Mr Carroll confirmed that ICMSA has requested that affected farmers be allowed to repay via next years’ ACRES payment rather than the next scheduled payment which will most likely be the ANC payment due in mid/late September – a payment Mr. Carroll described as critical in terms of cashflow for farmers going into the last quarter of what has been an extremely difficult year.  

“It’s really important that we all recognise that these farmers were overpaid due to issues in the Department processes – the primary fault is theirs – and we want a degree of flexibility in terms of when and how those farmers can repay the money that was – let’s remember – paid to them by Departmental error.  The notion that this overpayment by the Department now constitutes ‘debt and the use of that word in Departmental communications is inappropriate and outlandish. This was a error on the part of the Department and they should be as flexible as possible in recouping the money that they overpaid to these farmers. ICMSA’s opinion is that the repayments should come out of next year’s ACRES payments as the pressures on cashflow this year are widely known and accepted by all”, said Mr. Carroll.

Mr. Carroll concluded by asking the Minister to directly intervene and order the maximum degree of flexibilities in the repayment options. “He should do this = and he should do it well in advance of the due dates for the ANC payment so badly needed this year by so many farmers”, he said.

Ends         15 July 2024

Eamon Carroll, 087-6312945

Deputy President, ICMSA.

Or

Cathal MacCarthy, 087-6168758

ICMSA Press Office