The decision by the Department of Agriculture to bring forward GLAS payments to help out struggling farmers in out current crisis has been welcomed as an important step to support the industry.
Over 42,300 farmers will benefit from €26 million in GLAS balancing payments which are now arriving a month ahead of schedule.
The GLAS programme incentivises the promotion of biodiversity, the protection of water quality and the adoption Climate Action measures on farms.
Galway East TD Seán Canney described this as a sensible move as farm finances are under “particularly severe pressure” during the Coronavirus crisis.
“GLAS is important for the rural environment and it is right that farmers should be supported in this way at a time when the sustainability of the domestic food supply chain is vital for the nation.”
The payments are expected to start arriving in farmers’ bank accounts next week starting from Monday, April 20.
The balancing payment represents the final 15% of the 2019 payment and completes the total payment for GLAS actions undertaken last year.
Commenting on the announcement, Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed said that bringing forward these payments should, “significantly improve cashflow on Irish farms in these challenging times.”
“It is an important part of our response to the impacts of Covid-19 on Irish farm incomes,” Minister Creed added.
“Our priority now is to continue to make payments to other applicants as they become eligible and we will continue to make payments on an ongoing basis”.
