asked the Minister for Local Government if he will state (a) the amount expended by the State under the Rates on Agricultural Land (Relief) Act, 1953, in each of the financial years 1954-55 and 1955-56, and the estimated amount in respect of the financial year 1956-57, and (b) the amount that would be expended on the basis of the Act of 1946 in each of the three years in question.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Rates on Agricultural Land.
The amount of the Agricultural Grant in each of the financial years 1954-55 and 1955-56 was as follows:—
|
1954-55 |
£5,178,454 |
|
1955-56 |
£5,265,430 |
The estimated amount of the grant for the year 1956-57 is £5,600,000.
Information is not available to show the exact amounts which, would be expended in these years on the basis of the Rates on Agricultural Land (Relief) Act, 1946, had that Act not been amended.
asked the Minister for Local Government if he will state in respect of each of the financial years 1953-54 to 1956-57 the exact amount of the gain or loss to (a) the Cork County Council, (b) all local authorities and (c) the Exchequer by the dropping of the supplementary allowance given in the Rates on Agricultural Land (Relief) Act, 1946, and the substitution therefor of the £17 employment allowance in the Rates on Agricultural Land (Relief) Act, 1953.
It is assumed that the Deputy wishes to be informed as to what amount of agricultural grant would have been paid to the Cork County Council and to local authorities generally if the system of distribution provided for under the Rates on Agricultural Land (Relief) Act, 1946, had applied to the financial years 1953-54 to 1956-57. This information is not available and to obtain it would necessitate its being calculated by each local authority concerned. An estimate prepared in my Department in respect of the year 1955-56 would indicate that in that year the new system of distribution of the Agricultural Grant resulted in a saving of approximately £100,000 to the Exchequer.