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Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 25 May 1938

Vol. 71 No. 13

Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Losses of Licensed Seed Dealers.

asked the Minister for Agriculture whether in view of the damages recovered against licensed, seed dealers in Éire by farmers whose crops of Red Marvel wheat had failed, and of the decision by the arbitrator appointed by the Agricultural Seed, Trade Association adverse to these seed dealers, he will compensate them for the losses they have sustained in carrying out the recommendations of his Department.

The restrictions on the importantion of wheat imposed by the Agricultural Produce (Cereals) Acts render it necessary for a person importing seed wheat to obtain a permit to do so from the Department of Agriculture. A dealer importing seed wheat for resale is not doing so for the purpose of carrying out any recommendations of the Department, but as a business transaction for his own profit involving the usual trade risks and obligations.

To secure, as far as possible, that importers would meet their obligations to farmers purchasing seed wheat, it was made a condition of every permit that the importer would purchase, by name, any seed wheat imported by him and would invoice it by the name by which it was purchased.

If, in making his purchases, any trader binds himself to a form of arbitration and thereby risks a decision such as that mentioned in the Deputy's question, no responsibility for the consequences attaches to my Department, nor am I prepared to consider compensating such a trader for any loss he may thereby suffer.

Is the Minister not aware that he urged the people of this country to sow Red Marvel wheat, and that, consequent upon that recommendation, certain seed dealers anxious to co-operate with his policy imported true Red Marvel wheat? When this wheat was sown it became manifest— as every intelligent agriculturist in the world already knew—that Red Marvel wheat was not a spring seed wheat for this climate and, accordingly, the crops did not ripen. People sued the sellers of the wheat because the crops did not ripen, the seed not being proper spring seed wheat, to recover against them, and when that went to the arbitrator under the Corn Producers' Association of Great Britain, his comment was that the Minister for Agriculture in Éire had reduced farming to the level of dog racing or horse racing, in inducing the farmers to take the risk involved in sowing Red Marvel wheat as a spring wheat. In the light of these facts, will not the Minister squarely face his responsibility, and indemnify these unfortunate men for the immense losses they suffered?

The Deputy is talking the greatest nonsense. Every expert in this country has pronounced Red Marvel wheat a spring wheat.

Is it not true that the arbitrator declared that the Minister had reduced farming to the level of dog-racing and horse-racing?

No such thing.

I will read out what he said. He used these words.

No. There was nothing said about dog-racing or horse-racing. These words were not used.

In the course of the award he said that the Minister had reduced farming to the level of dog-racing and horse-racing by recommending the sowing of this variety of wheat, which had not been properly tested for spring sowing.

These words were not used.

If the Minister will not admit the use of these words, do they express the sense of the words used?

The Deputy wants to get round it that way by adding his own words.

Do they not express the sense? The Minister admits that they express the sense.

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