Farming The president of the Irish Farmers' Association, Mr John Dillon, reacted furiously last night to the failure of the Budget to reverse last year's doubling of the animal disease levies from €10 million to €20 million.
"The Minister for Finance and the Minister for Agriculture and the Government have broken their commitments to the farming lobby in the partnership agreement," said an angry Mr Dillon last night.
He said the €5 million cut announced by Mr Walsh was only "a half-way house" on promises made in the Sustaining Progress agreement.
A halving of the €20 million in disease levies was one of the main demands of Mr Dillon and and IFA when it mounted its huge "tractorcade" protest last January after the increases were announced.
"We were promised that these levies would be cut in half, but they were not. It is unacceptable and I will not accept this," said Mr Dillon.
Support for Mr Dillon came from the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association president, Mr Pat O'Rourke, who said the promises made in the partnership talks were not delivered on, and that this was very disappointing.
Farmers faced an increase of 9 million in increased BSE testing charges in 2004, which meant the increase in levies and charges in the last two years had been 14 million, he said.
They had fewer problems, however, with the other major budgetary change, which increased the income-tax exemption for land leasing.
The Budget reduced the age at which exemption would apply from 55 years to 40 years, and the threshold for relief from €7,618.43 to €10,000 for leases of seven years or more, and from €5,079 to €7,500 for leases of five to seven years.
The Minister for Agriculture and Food, Mr Walsh, said this would improve land mobility and help better long-term planning by farmers who would require land to scale-up their farms in the new situation.
But Mr O'Rourke said that although he welcomed the improvement in the tax system, it was anti-family farming because it only applied to people who were unconnected. This meant leasing could not take place within families or relations.
Mr Dillon said the improved land-leasing incentives, combined with the improved investment grants and REPS scheme for 2004, would provide much-needed support for investment and restructuring in agriculture.
However, Mr Billy Timmins TD, Fine Gael's spokesman on agriculture, said the increased thresholds were too low and did not match inflation since the scheme was introduced in 1996.
Mr Thomas Honner, president of Macra na Feirme, expressed concern that the Government had imposed an age limit of 40 for eligibility for the relief.
"It would have been better to leave the exemption available for anyone who leases out their land, and we will be seeking further clarification on this matter in the days ahead," he said.
Sinn Féin's agriculture spokesman, Mr Martin Ferris TD, said while he welcomed the decision to decentralise and the increase in tax relief on leasing, more needed to be done to encourage the entrance of trained young farmers into the industry.
