said the items for his estimate were salaries and expenses of outdoor staff of inspectors and auditors £6,900; salaries of office staff £1,430; £500 for Minister's allowances; £400 for stationery and postage; £305 rent (4 offices in all); £155 for miscellaneous and £260 for contingencies, making a total of £10,040.¹ The estimate was not extravagant, having regard to the numbers employed. He had a staff of 43. The amount of work coming into the office could not be done with a lesser staff. One matter he was asked to mention with regard to the £100,000 loan. That was being distributed to the local committees in the proportion of one-tenth of the grants lost. There was very great distress in Wexford town as the manufacturing companies were unable to dispose of the stocks of machinery on hands and had practically closed down with the result that six or seven thousand men were thrown out of employment. After consultation with trade and labour representatives there they came to the conclusion that the only practicable scheme to relieve the distress was one for building concrete cottages which would cost from £250 to £400 each. If £20,000 could be secured by the town council on overdraft from the bank they thought the Dáil might give some confidence to the people to take up this project by giving a loan of £1,000. The scheme was as far as he could see the only one that was suitable to relieve the serious condition of the town. If the cottages could be built for that sum it would bridge over the time of distress for the people out of work.
1. The total of the items listed is not £10,040 but £9,950. This discrepancy also occurs in the shorthand notes.
He thought it would be necessary to alter the terms of the loan for the £100,000. The scheme would not be passed unless it was a thoroughly sound one.
