asked the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries the number of farmers in each county who may be classified as (a) small farmers (b) development farmers and (c) commercial farmers.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Farmer Classifications.
108.
Farmers will be classified only as and when they apply to participate in the farm modernisation scheme. It is not possible, therefore, to say in advance how many farmers in any county may come into the various categories.
Is the Minister giving any consideration to having this whole scheme changed to some extent in view of bringing more people within the developing category? As he is aware there is much difficulty in regard to classification at present because of farm prices.
I am not satisfied with the scheme as it is but it would be difficult to make a good case in Brussels for modification of the scheme that we have not really operated for a period.
We cannot operate it.
Difficulties would become apparent during a period of operation of the scheme of, say, 12 months. After that time we should be able to go to Brussels with a comprehensive proposal for a review of the scheme.
The figures given in relation to Monaghan are a glaring example of the small percentage of farmers who can qualify under the scheme.
The Deputy is making a statement.
In County Monaghan we find that most of the farmers are more anxious to be classified as transitional farmers because this has the advantage of classification being decided upon without delay since it is easy to determine whether a farmer fits into that category. There is also the fact that transitional farmers do not have to undertake the discipline of a specific programme which would have to be carried out during a period of six years.
Is it not the position that farmers are unwilling to assume such an undertaking because of a lack of the resources that would enable them to be classified as developing farmers?
We are having arguments now instead of questions.
Since the question referred to numbers, could the Minister let us know the blanket number who have applied so far for benefits under these schemes in the three categories?
We would not know that unless the farmers were classified.
Could the Minister let us have the figures for those who have been classified?
Of about 16,000 applications received under this scheme by the 31st October, 3,668 farms have been classified. The breakdown of those is as follows: commercial, 68 or 2 per cent; development, 750 or 20 per cent and transitional, 2,850 or 78 per cent. The inclination is to deal first with the transitional farmers because it is easy to determine their classification. I am told that the sample is not nearly big enough yet to give a reasonable estimate of what the picture will be like later.
These figures are similar to the ones that we have been mentioning during the past 12 months except that in the case of transitional farmers the situation is worse than we feared. Our figure in respect of them was 70 per cent.