asked the Minister for Lands and Fisheries if he has been furnished with documentary evidence to show that the Republican Land Settlement Court decided that the lands of Mr. John Mansfield (Hopkins Estate), Lyrogue, Errill, Co. Leix, should be acquired for the relief of congestion; whether he can now state the number of holders under £20 valuation, living within a radius of two miles from these lands; whether he can furnish particulars of the total acreage of land presently occupied by Mr. Mansfield and his son in the counties of Leix and Kerry; whether Mr. Mansfield was offered an alternative holding by the Commissioners; and whether he will state the reason for the refusal of the Commissioners to acquire the lands in question.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Acquisition of Leix Lands.
The Land Commission are fully aware of the proceedings before the Land Settlement Commission Court in respect of the lands of Lyrogue. An application was made to the Court under the Dáil Eireann Courts (Winding Up) Act by the Plaintiffs (Martin Shiel & Ors.) for Registration of the order made by the Land Settlement Commission. The prescribed documents required by the Dáil Eireann Courts (Winding Up) Commission were not lodged by the Plaintiffs and on 7th April, 1925, the application for the Registration of the Decree was refused.
There are some 20 uneconomic holders within 2 miles radius of the lands whose Poor Law Valuations do not exceed £20.
The Land Commission are not aware that John Mansfield and his son, Joseph, hold any lands in Co. Kerry, but in Co. Leix the former appears to hold some 80 acres and the latter some 200 acres, including the lands of Lyrogue.
The owner was not willing to exchange, consequently the question of offering him alternative lands did not arise.
As the Deputy has already been informed the Land Commission proposed to resume the holding in question and served notice on the tenant of their intention to apply to the Judicial Commissioner for an order authorising resumption of the holding. The tenant objected, and his objection was heard by the Land Commission and allowed and accordingly the proceedings for resumption came to an end.
Will the Parliamentary Secretary state where he has got the information to prove to him between the date of the answer he has read to-day and the date of the answer previously given, that the number of uneconomic holders under the £20 valuation has now increased from 2 to 20?
I said two in the immediate neighbourhood of the farm, and twenty within a two-miles radius.
Will the Parliamentary Secretary say whether he proposes to acquire land to relieve the congestion which he now admits to exist in the area?
I do not propose to take any further action.