§ Lord Stanley of Alderleyasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether it is the correct interpretation of the Answers given by Earl Howe on 5th May (HL Deb, col. 704) and 10th May (HL Deb, col. WA52) that Integrated Administration and Control Systems (IACS) forms checked after 14th May and found to contain minor technical errors will be returned to the farmer for correction and will incur no penalty.
Earl HoweIf farmers have made genuine errors in completing their IACS application forms they are free to correct them after 15th May. Provided that farmers notify the relevant department of the error before they discover the mistake and before they have been notified of a visit to check the application, they will suffer no financial penalty. If the department discovers the error first, the action taken will depend on the precise nature of the mistake. The Government will be as reasonable as it can, within the rules of the system, in processing the applications, particularly where minor technical errors are concerned.