asked the Minister for Finance if he will state the total annual amounts now being paid into the Land Purchase Fund in respect of land stock, excess stock and bonus; and if he will give an estimate of the capital value of these payments in each case.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Payments to Land Purchase Fund.
The total amount paid into the Land Purchase Fund in the financial year 1928-29 in respect of annuities under the Land Acts, 1903-09, amounted to £2,742,561. In the same period a sum of £134,500 was paid as the Saorstát contribution towards bonus and excess stock. The sinking fund portion of the above annuities amounted to £401,529. It would be quite impossible to give even an approximate estimate of the capitalised value of these payments, as this depends on the capitalised value of the innumerable annuities of which they are composed, all with varying periods to run.
Would it not be possible for the President or the Minister for Finance to give us the amount of stock outstanding in respect of which annuities are being paid?
I think that that is a very different question. The Deputy will appreciate that, and if he puts down a question, I am sure that the Minister will give him the information. I may add that there is one transaction, or series of transactions, which occurred about 1885, which would probably be impossible to disentangle so as to give the exact figure for the amounts in question.