A commitment was given in the programme for Government to support agriculture and the farming community. It is totally unacceptable that thousands of farmers are waiting for GLAS and other payments. They have been told that the delays are due to computer glitches, but that does not wash with me or anybody else. The situation is totally unfair and the morals are very wrong. If they owed money-----

That is not on promised legislation.

It is, of course. A commitment was given in the programme for Government to support agriculture. These delays are stifling agriculture. The Minister, Deputy Coveney, was in the Department for five years.

Put down a parliamentary question.

I have done. Farmers are protesting today. There is no modicum of fairness in the fact that farmers will not get the money they have invested, spent and borrowed in order to develop their industry in line with the commitment in the programme for Government. They have been given every excuse for delays, the latest of which is IT problems. If they are late with returns to the tax office or in arrears they would be charged huge penalties, as would everybody else.

The point is made.

It is totally unfair and this has to be sorted out.

Last year, 2016, was the first full year of payments under the GLAS scheme. At the end of December 2016, there were 37,500 active participants in the GLAS scheme, of which 27,400 received 85% of their 2016 payment. As Deputy McGrath is aware, payments can only issue when all of the required validation checks have been successfully passed.

They have been.

Further payments of €4.2 million have been issued to just under 1,200 participants in the past few days. Approximately 8,900 cases remain outstanding and, starting immediately, further payments will be made on a weekly basis as cases are cleared.