269. Deputy Áine Collins asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he received advice from the Attorney General on whether there is an obligation on the Government to properly compensate farmers in the designated areas whose lands and right to private property under the Constitution have been devalued or made worthless by the designation. [10269/15]

Designation of lands is a matter in the first instance for the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht and I have neither sought nor received advice from the Attorney General in this regard.

Through GLAS, my Department’s new agri-environment scheme, farmers with designated lands will have an opportunity to access an annual agri-environment payment. This is designed to compensate for income foregone as well as covering the additional costs of implementing the various actions required under GLAS.