The Less Favoured Area Compensatory Allowances (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2009

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

In relation to the years 2007, 2008 and 2009 the following Regulations, that is say—

(a)The Less Favoured Area Compensatory Allowances (No. 2) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2007;

(b)The Less Favoured Area Compensatory Allowances Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2008; and

(c)The Less Favoured Area Compensatory Allowances (No. 2) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2008;

provide for the implementation of Articles 13(a), 14(1), 14(2) first and second indents, and 15 of Council Regulation (EC) No. 1257/1999 (O.J. No. L160, 26.06.1999, p.80) together with Articles 36(a)(ii) and 51(1) of Council Regulation (EC) No. 1698/2005 (O.J. No. L277, 21.10.2005, p.1), insofar as those Council Regulations relate to less favoured areas.

Those Regulations also provide for the implementation of measure 2.1 of the Northern Ireland Rural Development Programme approved by Commission Decision C(2007) 4411.

Those Regulations in particular define the conditions of eligibility for less favoured area compensatory allowances and the rates at which those allowances are paid. Article 15(3) of Regulation 1257/1999 provides for allowances to be fixed between the minimum and maximum amount set out in the Annex. Under Regulation 1698/2005, the minimum and maximum payments are set out in the Annex to that Regulation. And the Northern Ireland Rural Development Programme also sets minimum grant rates. These amounts are all expressed on Euros.

In order to ensure that payments of less favoured area compensatory allowances are made at rates which comply with these minimum and maximum amounts, these Regulations amend the earlier Regulations referred to above to set increased rates for payments and also make provision for additional payments in cases where less favoured area compensatory allowances have already been paid in respect of the years 2007, 2008 and 2009.

The Northern Ireland Rural Development Programme, together with a copy of Commission Decision C(2007) 4411 are available for inspection at offices of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dundonald House, Upper Newtownards Road, Belfast BT4 3SB.