asked the Minister for Finance if he will take steps to safeguard the owners of lands acquired through the payment of purchase money in land bonds against loss through depreciation by the maintenance of a ready market on the stock exchange for disposing of land bonds; if not, why; and if he will take other steps to maintain the value of land bonds such as conferring a right of conversion into any subsequent higher interest bearing issue of Land Bonds or Government stock or a right to use bonds to pay death duties or tax.
Ceisteanna — Questions. Oral Answers. - Disposal of Land Bonds.
66.
I am not aware of any great difficulties in the disposal of land bonds on the Stock Exchange. The market price of those bonds is, however, affected by the course of interest rates generally, and no action on my part could protect land bonds or other fixed interest securities against depreciation if interest rates rise after the creation of bonds.
If the right of conversion into subsequent higher interest bearing issues of land bonds or Government stock were conferred on land bonds it would follow that the annuities fixed on the resale of lands would also have to be revised upwards, as these annuities are related to the interest rate payable on bonds. This would not be practical.
I am not prepared to accept land bonds in payment of death duties at face value.
Does the law not lay down that land bonds are to be issued on the basis that they will remain at or near par for a reasonable period after issue?
Is it not a fact that the land bonds that were issued at the beginning of this year are already nine or ten points below the value at which they were issued, and that the land bonds that were issued at the end of last year are about 19 points below what they were issued at, that is, they are down from 100 to 81? Does the Minister think there is nothing wrong with this?
Question No. 67.
On a point of order, the Minister was asked a supplementary question and I do not recall getting an answer.
I replied fully in answer to the Deputy's question.
The Minister did not reply to it. This is a very serious matter which brings the whole legislature into disrepute. Surely it is incumbent on the Department of Finance, if inflation makes it necessary, so to arrange that, instead of issuing the bonds every year, they will issue them every month or every week or whatever is required to comply with the law?
May I point out to Deputy O'Leary, that is not a supplementary question, it is a statement.
If the Deputy asks a supplementary question the Minister should answer it instead of insolently ignoring it. I would not have thought he, like some of his colleagues, would be involved in that.