The Minister for Agriculture, Mr Walsh, last night rejected an EU offer which would allow him to pay £20 million compensation to 20,000 farmers who will lose out on the changeover of the EU headage scheme.
He said the offer, which would allow payments for three years on a declining basis, was not acceptable and he was seeking an urgent meeting with the EU Commissioner, Mr Franz Fischler.
The new scheme involves paying farmers on the number of acres they own rather than on the number of animals on the farm in EU-designated Disadvantaged Areas. Mr Fischler has accepted that the rule change will hurt some Irish farmers.
Mr Walsh said a commitment to protect recipient families under the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness would be delivered.
The Irish Farmers' Association president, Mr Tom Parlon, estimated that while 70,000 farmers would benefit from the changes, 20,000 would see their incomes decimated.
He said a system of payment by the acre, irrespective of the type of farming or family circumstances, would not target the farmers who need the payments to continue working the land.
The Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers' Association president, Mr Pat O'Rourke, warned that no farmer should be allowed to lose out because of the changeover, and failure to rectify the situation would be in breach of the promise made in the PPF.