asked the Minister for Agriculture if he will state how many applicants under the land project have qualified for the maximum grant of £30 per acre recently announced by him.
Ceisteanna — Questions. Oral Answers. - Land Project Grants.
Mr. O'Higgins
The announcement of the increase is very recent and the figure asked for by the Deputy is not available. In any event, I do not consider that the expenditure of the considerable amount of official time, which the compilation of special statistics of this type would necessitate, would be justified.
Mr. O'Higgins
Arising out of the Parliamentary Secretary's reply, would the Parliamentary Secretary consider in view of the suggestion made that no single applicant can ever qualify for the maximum grant that the expenditure of time would be worth the value of investigating that? The fact is that no one has qualified since the announcement was made.
Why could they not qualify?
Mr. O'Higgins
Because it was just a stunt.
No such assertion is warranted.
Mr. O'Higgins
There is a way of disproving it, then.