Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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As ACRES is one of the Schemes listed in the Schedule of the Agriculture Appeals Act, 2001, participants in ACRES may submit appeals in respect of decisions taken in relation to their participation in the Scheme. The usual process is, however, that participants seek an internal review by the Department in the first instance. Where a participant is dissatisfied with the outcome of the internal review, they may formally appeal to the Agriculture Appeals Office.

It is important to note that the relevant land is scored three times in the five-year contractual period, with the first scoring done in Year 1 to get the baseline and then the land would be scored again in Year 3 and Year 5. This work was undertaken in 2023 in respect of contracts and lands entered into the Scheme under Tranche 1. Participants whose lands were scored in 2023 had the opportunity to get the relevant land scored again in 2024 when submitting their annual claim, under the Basic Income Support for Sustainability (BISS).

It is recommended that participants discuss the scores assigned with the relevant assessor in the first instance to

gain an understanding of the basis for the score, as there are a number of factors considered during the assessment in accordance with the relevant scorecard for the land in question.

The assessment and scoring of lands under the two ACRES General results-based actions and the forage land under the ACRES Co-operation approach is done by the participant’s ACRES advisor. ACRES Advisors were required to attend mandatory scorecard training to upskill them on the assessment and scoring of lands. As there is a results-based payment for commonage greater than 10 hectares, such commonage was also scored. The assessment and scoring of such commonage within the ACRES Co-operation areas was done by the relevant ACRES Co-operation Project Team, while commonage outside those areas was done by four teams contracted by the Department. A participant may contact my Department to get the contact details of the group that assessed their commonage so that they can then make contact with them.