asked the Minister for Agriculture if he is aware of the financial difficulties caused to farmers who may not offer their livestock for sale if an inconclusive or reactor beast is discovered in their herds; and if he will arrange that credit facilities for such farmers will be made available on short notice.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Reactor Cattle: Credit Facilities for Farmers.
26.
The purpose of declaring an attested area is to confer the benefits of attestation on all the farmers within the area whose herds have reached the required status. The comparatively few herd owners who have not yet reached that status will be brought up to standard as quickly as possible, but, in the meantime, they can either sell their stock outside the area, or, subject to a 14-day test, within the area, or for immediate slaughter without a test. I see no reason why the normal credit facilities available should not cover such cases.
Is the Minister aware that in some cases stockowners did not have reactors taken off their hands for as long as three months? This does not refer to County Mayo, but it has happened in the West. Those people have been gravely handicapped because the sale of stock is their only source of income.
I am not aware of these cases. If they occurred, they were not reported to me at any time.
The purpose of my question was to show that such cases do exist. When a reactor is present in a herd, the owner is prevented from moving animals out of the area to a fair or market. Surely it would not be too much to ask the Minister—or would it—to provide short notice credit facilities in such cases?
The Deputy's Question refers to the attested area of Mayo, Galway and Sligo?
It does not. I am referring to outside these areas.
Then the Question has no meaning.