asked the Minister for Lands and Fisheries if he will state what progress has been made in connection with the scheme of migration of the inhabitants of Inniskea Islands, north and south, to the mainland, and when the division of the lands in the townlands of Surgeview, Nakil and Letterbeg, O'Reilly Estate, Belmullet, County Mayo, will take place.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Migration of Inniskea Islanders.
The scheme for the division of the lands of Surgeview or Nakil and Letterbeg on the O'Reilly Estate is in course of preparation, but it is not possible at present to say when it can be completed and put into operation. The matter is being dealt with as expeditiously as possible.
I am quite aware of the difficulty of dealing with this large estate, but I would like to impress on the Parliamentary Secretary the position of the people on the Inniskea Islands, and I should be glad if the Land Commission could give any indication as to the possibility of migrating them to the mainland before winter. They should certainly not be left on the Islands over next winter.
I cannot give any undertaking on that point. This is a very difficult case to deal with. The owner cannot be dispossessed of the land until we are in a position to offer him an exchange of land, and there are other difficulties of a more serious and a graver kind that will have to be dealt with in the next few months.