(South Tipperary) asked the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries if his attention has been drawn to reports indicating that the fall in the amount of native wheat specified as required for flour and wheatmeal milling will mean an extra levy of 10/- per barrel next year if wheat production is over 260,000 tons; and what was the amount of native wheat of good or potential milling quality produced this year.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Flour and Wheatmeal Milling.
43.
If 260,000 tons of dried millable wheat are produced, a levy of 3/- per barrel will be necessary to meet the cost of disposal of 20,000 tons surplus to milling requirements. Any production in excess of 260,000 tons will require a progressively higher levy.
This year approximately 320,000 tons, dried, were purchased at the full millable wheat price.
Is it the Minister's idea to get the farmers to grow less wheat next year than last year? If so, would he not have thought a quota system would have been better? Thirdly, had he any discussions with any farmers' organisations before he announced this scheme?
The situation in regard to the levy goes back to 1958. The Act of that year, the Cereals Act, made and provided for the application of a levy. It was not done without due consideration and in fact the representatives of the wheat growers agreed to it—I would almost say they proposed that a levy in principle should be applied—and all I am doing, as recently announced, is giving effect to that which was then agreed. The power is given in that Act and what I have announced is merely making it work, no more and no less.
Will the Minister agree that, if this cut of three shillings is made, wheat growers will be getting less than they were in 1954? Will he agree that, if one takes the fall in the value of money into consideration, they should be getting more than £6 10s per barrel? Will he agree that the farmers are the only section of the community whose incomes have not risen, comparatively, with depreciation in the value of money?
Can the Minister tell us if the percentage of wheat accepted as millable this year was the highest percentage ever recorded?
Not only was the millable percentage of the total supply the highest ever recorded but the yield per acre was beyond anything anybody could have anticipated.
Thanks be to God.
God does not provide the weather—Fianna Fáil do.
The total amount collected by farmers for wheat this year was in excess of £12 million and, with all due respect to Deputy L'Estrange's assertions that the price of wheat should be £6 10s per barrel, all I am saying, without fear of contradiction, is that £12 million for the number of acres of wheat under cultivation this year means that the farmers are well and truly paid for it, and nobody knows that better than the wheat farmers, and good luck to them.
Who sold the land to the Germans?
I bought a better one, thanks be to God. If I sold it, it was my own and I bought another. If the Deputy wants to get personal I can get personal too, but I would prefer not to.
(Interruptions.)
It would take a better man than Deputy Donegan to make bits of Des Foley.
Will the effect of the new arrangement in relation to wheat be that the farmers of this country will lose £1 million next year on the basis of the amount grown this year?
Deputy, you are talking through your hat.
Of course, according to the Minister I am talking through my hat, but the Minister knows that that is what he is doing, he is preparing to collect £1 million in levies.
Deputy, your friends agreed and proposed in 1958 that a levy of this nature should be applied. With all due respect to your friends, while they had a good idea in principle, they had not the wit to know that the way they proposed to do it was impossible. I have now found a way to apply the principle that they then proposed and that is what we are doing, no more and no less. The wheat farmers of this country are better off at the present time, if they get the same sort of returns as they have been getting this year, than they ever were before.
That is the trouble with the Minister. He knows everything about everything.
Why did you not vote for the tax when we were putting it on a few weeks ago to get this £1½ million? Why did you not vote for it then and stop squawking about it now? You did not want it, of course.