The Transitional Payment to Disadvantaged Area Scheme (Northern Ireland) 2015

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Scheme)

This Scheme provides for a final transitional payment to be made by the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to applicants from land designated as disadvantaged who have ceased to be eligible for future payments under Areas of Natural Constraint Regulations.

The Scheme—

(a) establishes eligibility criteria (Article 4);

(b) specifies the manner in which applications are to be made (Article 5);

(c) specifies the rate of payment (Article 6);

(d) enables the Department to reduce any payment due or paid if a previous de minimis aid payment has been made to the applicant in the past three years, for any purpose (Article 7)

(e) provides for the Department to withhold payment in any case where false or misleading information has been provided or where a person fails to cooperate with an authorised officer (Article 8);

(f) provide for the recovery of payments made under the Scheme (Article 9); and

(g) enables an authorised officer to exercise powers of entry and have access to relevant records and documents (Article 10).

Under Section 4(1) of the Agriculture (Temporary Assistance) Act (Northern Ireland) 1954, any person who, being required or authorised under or by virtue of this scheme to furnish any information, record or document, furnishes any information, record or document which, to his knowledge, is false in a material particular shall be guilty of an offence and shall, without prejudice to Article 10 of the Perjury (Northern Ireland) Order 1979 (S.I.) 1979/No. 1714 (N.I. 19), be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale or to imprisonment not exceeding twelve months or to both such fine and such imprisonment.

Under Section 4(2) of that Act any person—

(h) who acts in contravention of, or neglects or fails to comply with any provision contained in this Scheme; or

(i) obstructs or impedes an authorised officer in the exercise of any power under this Scheme,

shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale.