asked the Minister for Lands if, in view of the demand for the relief of congestion by uneconomic land holders in North Kerry, the Land Commission will increase for the next few years the annual quota of holdings available in other counties for the settlement of applicants from North Kerry who are agreeable to vacate their existing holdings, which would thus become available for local distribution among affected uneconomic holders.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Lands for North Kerry Migrants.
The exact number of new holdings reserved by the Land Commission for allotment to migrants is liable to vary each year. As the number of applicants by far exceeds the supply of holdings available, the claims of all counties where congestion prevails, including County Kerry, must be considered in competition with each other before allocation of holdings takes place. In selecting suitable migrants from congested areas, the main determining factor is the usefulness of the applicant's existing lands towards the relief of local congestion.
Land Commission records are not kept on a basis of constituency areas. I find, however, that, in the case of County Kerry as a whole, the number of migrants taken from the county since 1950 is 43. It is not possible at this stage to forecast how many holdings for migrants will become available for disposal in the course of the next few years but the needs of County Kerry applicants will continue to receive full consideration.