I have decided to introduce this amendment to Section 5 of the Bill as a result of representations made to me by the Irish Banks' Standing Committee regarding security for borrowings by county committees of agriculture. Section 5 of the Bill as it stands provides that a committee of agriculture may, with the consent of and subject to any conditions imposed by the Minister for Agriculture, borrow by means of bank overdraft or otherwise money for the purposes of the schemes which it administers or for any other purpose connected with these schemes.
At present county councils are empowered by the Agriculture Act 1931 to borrow on behalf of committees of agriculture. The Bill provides that committees of agriculture will become bodies corporate and with powers to acquire or sell property and to borrow. Long-term borrowing especially could necessitate the offer of security. The present amendment will enable committees to offer their contributions from county councils as security for any long-term borrowing they may need to undertake and which is approved by the Minister for Agriculture.
While I do not anticipate that the committees will need to avail themselves to any great extent of the power to borrow money on a long-term basis, I feel that it is as well to provide for such a contingency. Other local bodies such as vocational education committees and county councils are similarly authorised to offer the security of their funds in respect of borrowing.
