Irwin challenges officials on cross compliance rule changes

Mr Irwin said the previous Minister Edwin Poots MLA (now Stormont Speaker) had acted decisively on reigning in the severity of fines imposed on farmers for breaches.

However, the current Minister, the Alliance Party’s Andrew Muir MLA, has decided to re-impose the 2021 arrangements, meaning the levying of much heavier sanctions for even minor breaches, something Mr Irwin said was “draconian and unhelpful”.

Mr Irwin said: “At Committee this week I left the DAERA officials and indeed my fellow committee members in no doubt as to my views on Minister Muir’s plan to increase fines on farmers for cross compliance breaches. This move is draconian, unhelpful and massively uncalled for in my view and that is a view also shared by the industry.

“This entire issue was one which was debated and discussed at length in a variety of formats, both departmentally and in committee some years ago and the decision taken by the former Minister Edwin Poots was a realistic and welcome recognition that fines, as they stood, were much too severe. The outcome of Court cases taken by farmers against Departmental imposed fines also backed this up. As I said back then, a court of law in criminal cases would not impose the types of fines that we seen levied on farmers on some occasions for minor breaches.”

He added: “You could have a situation over a few years where minor cross compliance breeches occur and then these mount up to become what the Department view as an ‘intentional’ breach and the fines issued are then astronomical. The cross compliance breaches can be very minor indeed, yet as has been said on the record by the officials at our committee this week, the Department has the right to intercept the payments and remove the calculated fine leaving a farmer thousands out of pocket.

“I stated clearly at the committee that I will not be supporting this Ministerial policy u-turn by Mr Muir. I am heartened that most committee members also felt the same. It is fundamentally wrong. It is not a fair system when a farmer is loosing many tens of thousands of pounds which affects the operation of their farm business for minor breaches of cross compliance.

“No one disagrees that there should be rigorous control of our agri-food supply chain from farm to fork. In terms of traceability and quality, I am a real believer in ensuring that the public has ultimate confidence in Northern Ireland produce. However, I do believe the current cross compliance penalties as previously set by Edwin Poots is more than sufficient to deal with the breaches.”

Mr Irwin concluded: “We have endured a run of bad news for farming in recent weeks with the proposed Labour Government Inheritance Tax law changes, which is devastating enough for our industry, however here we have more bad news from Minister Muir when pressure needs relieved from farmers, not increased. Pushing a farmer to the brink with significant financial penalties helps no one, I urge the Minister to row back from these changes.”