asked the Minister for Finance if he will state how the figure £770,000, mentioned in the White Paper of Estimates of Receipts and Expenditure for the year 1934-35 as the estimated expenditure on additional services during the year 1934-35 is arrived at; and further to ask what are the additional services proposed to be established and the estimated expenditure on each of these additional services.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Additional Services.
As was clear from my Budget statement the figure of £770,000 is made up of two items mentioned therein, namely, £470,000 for further relief of rates on agricultural land and £300,000 for payment to local authorities on foot of arrears of land purchase annuities funded under the Land Act, 1933.
Will the Minister say if the £300,000 for payments to local authorities is in respect of withheld grants from the local authorities?
Perhaps the Deputy will repeat that question?
Is the sum of £300,000 an instalment of the amount which was deducted from the agricultural grant in respect of unpaid instalments of annuities?
I will refer the Deputy to my Budget speech, with which he dealt yesterday.
That is not the point. The point to which I would like to direct attention is that approximately £650,000 has been deducted over a series of years from agricultural grants or other payments to local authorities. On the occasion of the introduction of the recent Land Act it was stated that compensation in respect of that sum would be made in the Budget speech of the Minister. Is that the full settlement of the claim amounting to £650,000?
I am not aware that the statement to which the Deputy refers was, in fact, made. As to the first part of his supplementary question, again I must refer him to my Budget statement.
Does the Minister intend to make any other payments to local authorities in respect of the sums that he deducted from them out of the agricultural grant and other payments, amounting in all to £650,000?
That is a separate question.