Tailoring farm schemes to island needs
Noonan asked whether agricultural schemes could be adapted to the needs of particular western areas. The Minister said no special offshore-island aid or national funds were available, and noted the wider difficulties of providing such support.
(Limerick West): In relation to islands and mainlands in the west, a number of schemes are being operated by the Department but they are not suitable to the needs of the particular areas. Would the Minister consider amending the schemes to suit particular needs?
Comment on this
Apart from the points I referred to in my reply, no special aid is available for farmers on offshore islands. It would create a terrible problem for the commission who would not be dealing just with two islands but with a couple of thousand islands in Greece alone. We do not have any national funds available to initiate any funded schemes for the islands.