asked the Minister for Industry and Commerce if he will circulate a statement to Deputies indicating the number of new factories which have been established in the Saorstát since March, 1932, the number of factories in each county, the names of the proprietors of the factories, the commodities manufactured, and the number of persons employed in each such factory.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - New Factories.
The preparation of a statement giving the detailed information asked for would involve an amount of time and trouble which, in view of the present pressure of work in my Department, would be unwarranted. Further, I would be precluded from giving in such a statement the number of persons employed in each factory as this would involve publication of confidential information relating to individual firms. For official information generally relating to industrial undertakings in the Saorstát, I would refer the Deputy to the Census of Production reports and to the Official Industrial Directory compiled by my Department.
Has it not been the practice of the Irish Press to publish the number of people employed in all the new factories?
That is politics.
Would the Minister not consider consulting the Irish Press as judging from the reports they publish all these statistics are available to them?
I am sure that anything published in that organ is correct. If the Deputy had that information I cannot understand why he put down the question.