§ Mr. Nicholas WintertonTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the impact on farm(a) cash flow and (b) livelihoods in the Macclesfield constituency of delays in the despatch of sheep annual premium to farmers who have had a partial contiguous cull of sheep as a result of foot and mouth disease; and if she will make a statement. [15809]
§ Mr. MorleyThe Sheep Annual Premium Scheme is fully funded by the European Community. In administering the scheme member states must ensure that the rules are strictly enforced to avoid disallowance of Community funding. We are conscious of the need to pay claims without undue delay, but this must be balanced with the need to safeguard taxpayers' money.
European Community rules for farmers affected by FMD require claims to be cross-checked against veterinary records to ensure that the animals culled were eligible for premium. The majority of FMD affected claims have been paid their first advance of the premium from late July as usual. There are some cases where we require further information from claimants on the number of eligible sheep retained, including those where only part of the flock has been culled due to FMD. None of these are in the Macclesfield area.
Additionally, claim processing on all schemes has been affected by the diversion of staff to FMD duties and industrial action.