asked the Minister for Industry, Commerce and Energy the amount of new agricultural machinery which has been imported during each of the last three years; and the efforts that are being made to have industries set up to capture more of the home market.
Written Answers . - Agricultural Machinery .
164.
: Excluding dairying equipment the following are the imports of agricultural machinery for the years 1975 to 1977:
|
1975 |
1976 |
1977 |
|
|
£ million |
£ million |
£ million |
|
|
Machinery for preparing and cultivating soil |
4.126 |
7.345 |
10.810 |
|
Machinery for harvesting, threshing, sorting |
10.150 |
14.681 |
25.324 |
|
Agricultural tractors (new) |
11.453 |
18.371 |
30.884 |
|
Other agricultural machinery |
0.795 |
1.688 |
1.484 |
It is evident that the major part of the imports consists of high technology products such as tractors, combine harvesters and other heavy machinery which are outside the scope of the existing Irish manufacturer. Within the medium technology range there should be opportunities for the development of the Irish industry. The IDA have had discussions with representatives of the industry to identify ways in which the sector can expand. These discussions will continue with a view to establishing an overall development plan for the sector.
In the past five years the IDA have approved grant assistance of £2.2 million to firms in the agricultural machinery sector.