I move:—
Go ndeontar suim ná raghaidh thar £289,976 chun slánuithe na suime is gá chun íoctha an Mhuirir a thiocfaidh chun bheith iníoctha i rith na bliana dar críoch an 31adh lá de Mhárta, 1932, chun Tuarastail agus Costaisí Oifig an Aire Talmhaíochta agus seirbhísí áirithe atá fé riara na hOifige sin, maraon le hIldeontaisí i gCabhair.
That a sum not exceeding £289,976 be granted to complete the sum necessary to defray the Charge which will come in course of payment during the year ending on the 31st day of March, 1932, for the Salaries and Expenses of the Office of the Minister for Agriculture and of certain services administered by that Office, including sundry Grants-in-Aid.
I propose, in laying before the Dáil the Estimates of the Department of Agriculture for the year 1931-32, to indicate as briefly as possible the reasons for the more important variations between the figures for this year and last year under the various groups of sub-heads. In view of the detailed information as to each sub-head supplied on former occasions, it will not presumably be necessary or desirable that I should cover again the same ground, and I shall, therefore, refer chiefly to some of the more important matters coming within the scope of the Estimates. It will be seen that the gross Vote of the Department of Agriculture is £596,330, and the net amount £434,964, this latter figure being obtained by subtracting from the gross figure the amount of the Appropriations-in-Aid, i.e., £161,366. Particulars of these Appropriations-in-Aid are set out on page 219 of the Estimates; but as I mentioned last year, the grants amounting to £54,650 from the Local Taxation Grant, the Church Temporalities Fund and the Estate Duty Grant are not, strictly speaking, receipts which arise naturally from the Department's work. Accordingly, this sum of £54,650 should be added to the net figure of £434,964 in order to ascertain the total net expenditure on the services covered by the Department's Vote, which will give a total estimated net expenditure of £489,614.
The initial group of Sub-heads A, B, C and D, cost in round figures £130,500, as compared with £131,400 last year, showing a decrease of £900. This group includes, in addition to the salaries and expenses of the staff at Headquarters, which is mainly administrative, the general technical and outdoor staff of the Department, together with other central expenses which cannot conveniently be allocated amongst other sub-heads.
Passing now to the sub-heads which follow, I propose again, as in the past, for convenience sake, to divide these into two main groups, i.e., Agricultural Education, Development and Research work, and the administration of Acts and Statutory Orders. Experience has shown that it is extremely difficult in practice to mark off by any definite line a sphere of research work from that of agricultural education and development. Sub-heads E 1 to F 7, together with Sub-heads K 2, L, M 1, M 2, and M 3 may conveniently be taken together under the heading of Educational Services. The total cost of this work will be £137,600, a figure which is slightly under the corresponding figure for last year.
The grants given to county committees of agriculture as an addition to the funds obtained by those bodies from rates for the purposes of the various live stock and other important schemes administered by them will be found under Sub-heads H 1 and H 2. The total of these sub-heads is £84,100, a net increase of £550 over last year. It is estimated that about £65,200 will be the sum contributed from rates to the work of the county committees of agriculture, giving a total of over £149,000 available for the carrying out of these local schemes.
A good deal of the Department's educational and development work which is carried on centrally by the Department itself resembles in many ways the work done through the county committees of agriculture. Central work of this nature may be grouped under Sub-heads G 1, G 2, G 3, I, J, K 1, K 3, and M 4. The estimated expenditure under this group is a little over £115,000 gross, or £72,000 net, as compared with £113,000 gross and £71,000 net last year. The making of advances to co-operative creamery societies was discontinued last year, but it is anticipated that a sum of £9,800 in partial repayment of advances of this nature already made will be received this year as an Appropriation-in-Aid.
In regard to Sub-head M 5—Purchase of Creameries—the estimated amount required for this object during the current year is £60,000, as compared with £100,000 last year, of which latter sum £72,500 was actually expended in connection with this purchase scheme, which has already done so much, and will in the future, it is hoped, do still more towards placing the dairying industry in this country upon a permanently satisfactory business basis. It is obviously, as I have previously pointed out, a matter of considerable difficulty to arrive at anything like a precise estimate under this sub-head, seeing that the expenditure in any particular year must so largely depend upon the opportunities which may arise for the purchase of creameries under proprietary control, where such purchase appears necessary in the interests of the reorganisation of the industry. The total number of creameries purchased to the present date is 185, of which 79 have been closed as redundant; 43 have been transferred to co-operative societies, and 63 are temporarily retained pending suitable arrangements for transfer. Before leaving this important group of sub-heads, which I have described generally as educational, it may be well to refer to some of the variations in the provision made for the current year as compared with last year.
Sub-head E 2—Veterinary Research. —The increase of £401 is mainly due to the fact that the salary of a veterinary inspector employed at the Laboratory has been this year transferred from Sub-head A to this sub-head, to which it more properly belongs.
Sub-head E 3—Subscriptions, etc., to International and other Research Organisations.—The large decrease under this sub-head is due, as will be seen, mainly to the fact that last year a provision of £1,900 was made in connection with expenditure at the World's Poultry Congress in London. New items of expenditure appear in this sub-head in respect of expenditure in connection with the forthcoming International Dairy Congress at Copenhagen, and the International Seed-Testing Congress in Holland, and also a sum of £100, which it is proposed to contribute annually towards the funds of the Imperial Forestry Institute as the Saorstát share in a scheme to provide that institute with a sufficient income to enable it to undertake the preparation and circulation among all contributing members of information relating to forestry, and to provide facilities for dealing with inquiries from these countries relating to silviculture and management, etc.
Sub-head F 2—Grants to Private Agricultural Schools, etc.—The appointment of an extra teacher, and the furnishing of places for five additional resident pupils at the Swinford School of Rural Domestic Economy account for the small increase shown.
Sub-head F 5—University College, Dublin: Faculty of General Agriculture.—Additions have been made to the staff of this faculty, which has not yet reached its full development.
Sub-head F 6—University College, Cork: Faculty of Dairy Science.—Out of the sum of £82,000 provided for capital expenditure on the purchase of land, the erection of farm buildings and the erection and equipment of a creamery and of a dairying institute, etc., for the Dairy Science Faculty, a little over £70,000 has been already spent, and it is probable that the balance of £12,000 will be paid over before the end of the current financial year. On the completion of the institute and creamery buildings, it is anticipated that this faculty will be fully organised.
Sub-head F 7—Educational Tours for Agricultural Instructors.—The provision under this sub-head has been doubled, as it is proposed this year to organise tours in other countries to enable some of the instructors in agriculture to study farming methods, and instructors in poultry-keeping to study poultry methods elsewhere. As most of the poultry instructors were afforded the opportunity last year of visiting the World's Poultry Congress in London, no special provision for an educational tour for these officers was considered necessary.
Sub-head G 2—Improvement of Milk Production.—The decrease of almost £2,500 under this sub-head arose from the fact that an investigation carried out by the Department into the methods of working of a number of cow-testing associations rendered it necessary, owing to the discovery of certain irregularities in some of the associations, to reorganise this work by the elimination of certain unsatisfactory associations and the amalgamation of others. On the other hand, a sum of £400, which did not appear last year, will be required for one of the courses of instruction for supervisors of these associations, courses which are given every second year.
Sub-head G 3—Improvement of Live Stock.—The increase of £500 is due mainly to increased railway charges for the carriage of premium bulls and boars.
Passing over Sub-heads H 1 and H 2, which I have already dealt with, I come to Sub-head I, Special Agricultural Schemes in Congested Districts, under which an increase of £4,691 is shown, an increase due to the development of special schemes for the Gaeltacht area. The main items of expenditure under these schemes for the current year are estimated as follows:—Salaries and travelling expenses of additional staff, £2,529; Demonstration plots to be supervised by additional staff, £700; Special scheme for location of sows, £550; Special poultry scheme, £445; Shelter belt scheme, £160. In regard to the poultry station scheme, under which grants are paid to selected applicants for the erection and stocking of poultry stations, I may say that this helpful scheme was inaugurated last year in the Connemara district, and is now being extended to the Rosses district of County Donegal.
Sub-head K 3—Grant to Bloodstock Breeders' Association of Ireland.—This is a new sub-head in the Department's Vote. The Bloodstock Breeders' Association of Ireland have organised a scheme of advertising and publicity with a view to bringing under the notice of possible purchasers abroad, in a way which has not hitherto been done, the merits of Irish bred horses. The funds of the Association for such purpose are limited, and I believe that in the general interests of an important national industry, the State should, at least as an experiment, make some contribution towards the expense of such a scheme. It is therefore proposed this year to bear half the cost of such publicity, up to the limit of £300.
Sub-head M 1—Miscellaneous Work. —The increase of £740 under this sub-head is due to increased expenditure under the Farm Finances Scheme, including the salary (£150) of an additional costings officer, the payment of honoraria to farmers for keeping and furnishing accounts, and of supervising allowances to county instructors in agriculture and to assistant agricultural overseers for extra duties done in connection with this scheme. As Deputies are aware, greatly increased attention is now being given in all progressive agricultural countries to the important subject of farm costings. As the appointment of the additional costings officer has not yet been made, the revised scheme has not as yet come into operation.
Sub-head M 3—Printing of Special Departmental Publications.—The increase of £400 arises from the fact that the sum of £600 is provided in respect of a volume of the Register of non-Pedigree Dairy Cattle, which will be a much larger publication than the Register of Purebred Dairy Cattle, for which £200 was provided last year.
Sub-head M 4—Loans for Agricultural Purposes.—The reduction here is due to a falling off in the applications for loans for hand sprayers and agricultural implements.
I come now to the second group of sub-heads, relating to the administration of Acts and Statutory Orders (Sub-heads N.1 to 0.7), which may be classified under the general heading of "Control," as compared with the educational and development sub-heads with which I have already dealt. The total estimates for this group amount to £68,800, against which must be placed estimated appropriations-in-aid of £31,850, leaving a net expenditure of a little under £37,000. The titles of the various sub-heads in this group indicate fairly clearly the nature of the work done under each. Before referring to the particular sub-heads in which variations from last year's figures occur, I shall deal with the Sub-head 0.7—Agricultural Produce (Fresh Meat) Act, 1930. This Act, in so far as it applies or relates to beef, veal and the offals of cattle, pork and the offals of pigs, and mutton and lamb and the offals of sheep, came into operation on the 1st September last. The eight temporary veterinary examiners are employed at the larger factories, and are distributed as follows:—1 at Castlebar, 1 at Dundalk, 2 at Tralee, 3 at Waterford and 1 at Wexford. Provision is also made for the remuneration of thirteen part-time veterinary examiners, whose remuneration varies from a fee of two guineas per day of necessary attendance at the slaughtering premises, to a fee per 100 animals examined. There are at present twelve of these part-time veterinary examiners employed, one each being allocated to premises in the following places:—Cavan, Claremorris, Dromod, Enniscorthy, Killeedy, Kingscourt, Monaghan, Rathlee, Roscrea, Sligo, Waterford and Youghal.
In regard to the figure of £6,600 provided to cover contributions to local authorities in respect of the salaries of veterinary examiners, I may point out that Section 39 of the Act empowers me to authorise a veterinary officer of a local sanitary authority to carry out the powers and duties imposed by the Act on a veterinary examiner. The provisions of this section have been availed of in the County Boroughs of Cork, Dublin and Limerick, in which cases the salaries of a number of officers are, in accordance with this procedure, refunded by the Department to the local authority. The provision thus made covers the work of veterinary examination in thirteen registered slaughtering premises. The two temporary marketing inspectors, in respect of whom a sum of £520 is provided, carry out inspections at slaughtering premises and also at ports and railway stations concerning the condition, packing, loading, etc., of fresh meat and offals. Turning now to the appropriations-in-aid anticipated from receipts from licences, etc., under the Fresh Meat Act, it will be seen that a sum of £9,600 is anticipated from this source during the coming year, as against last year's estimate of £2,800, which was, of course, for part of a year only. There are at present thirty-two registered slaughtering premises, and the number of licences held by exporters is 46, of which 5 are beef exporters' licences; 32 are pork exporters' licences, and 9 are mutton exporters' licences. In the four months ended 31st December last, the following numbers of animals were presented for veterinary examination at the registered slaughtering premises: Cattle (including calves), 3,856; pigs, 320,068; sheep (including lambs), 16,717. The Act has now been in operation for over eight months, and I am glad to say continues to work smoothly, the difficulties which are inevitably associated with the bringing into operation of an Act covering so wide and important a field being happily surmounted with the minimum of friction.
Passing now from this sub-head in the control group, I shall deal briefly with the figures of some of the other sub-heads in that group.
Sub-head N 2—Bovine Tuberculosis Order.—The estimate for the current year is £6,500, representing an increase of £1,000 on the estimate for last year. The actual expenditure, however, last year was £6,465, so that the present year's figure shows practically no change from that of last year.
Sub-head N 4—Live Stock Breeding Act.—The increase here is due to the necessity for an increase of £45 in salaries and £200 in travelling expenses, owing to the necessity for the making of special investigations in districts in which evasions of the Act are suspected by the Department. These increases are partially set off by the decrease of £60 in incidentals.
Sub-head O 1—Agricultural Produce (Eggs) Acts.—The decrease in this Estimate is due mainly to anticipated economies in travelling expenses. In connection with this sub-head I may remind Deputies that the Amending Act passed last year will be in operation this season. With the additional powers given by it for the control of the export trade, it is hoped that the quality of Saorstát eggs will be still further improved. In particular, the power given by that Act to an inspector to order the return to a shipper of any consignment of eggs, five per cent. of which fails to comply with the requirements of the Acts of 1924 and 1930, and the regulations made thereunder, will, I trust, prove a most useful factor in convincing those members of the trade who still unfortunately attempt to export eggs of inferior quality, that the highest standard must be maintained if they are to be in a position to send their eggs out of this country.
Sub-head O 2—Dairy Produce Act— The increase in this sub-head is mainly due to the necessity for providing for additional temporary inspectors, which the Department's experience has shown to be required to assist the permanent staff in coping with the abnormal pressure of work during the export season. It may perhaps be of interest to mention, in connection with this sub-head, that in the immediate future an order will be made requiring factory butter to comply with certain definite standards before export will be allowed. I hope that it will be possible for this order to take effect as from the 1st August next.
It will be noted that for this whole work the total estimate is £68,000, whereas the appropriations-in-aid are £31,000, leaving a balance of £37,000 as the net contribution made by the State. That is the net contribution made in connection with the Livestock Breeding Act, under which we control the breeding of livestock in this country, and under which we license all the bulls and now all the boars in the country. It includes also work under the Dairy Produce Act, under which the production of butter was completely controlled, work under the Agricultural (Eggs) Act, the Bovine Tuberculosis Order and under the Fresh Meat Act. When we consider that under these four Acts we attempted, and successfully attempted, and I will add with very little friction, to control the things I have mentioned—livestock, eggs, butter, etc.—at a cost of £31,000, I think I am entitled to say that this State is getting extremely good value for that expenditure. It will be seen that on page 201 of the Estimates an item of £15,700 appears under the heading of "Extra Receipts payable to the Exchequer," in respect of the repayment of loans advanced by the Department to agricultural co-operative credit societies. I continue to receive evidence from various quarters that this scheme of State advances to these small societies, to enable them to make loans to farmers, chiefly in the districts which some years ago suffered severely from fluke disease and from flooding, has proved to be a most beneficial one, and has done much to enable the small farmers in a number of districts to re-stock their land. The advances were made to 63 societies to the extent of £87,495, of which £50,156 has been repaid to 31st March last, leaving a sum of £37,339 still outstanding. No further advances are, of course, being made under the scheme, which was put into operation for a particular purpose, and for a limited period of years.
To conclude this necessarily brief survey of the numerous sub-heads in the Department's—Vote, I may summarise the Estimates for the current year in round figures as follows:— Headquarters Staff and Central Administration, £130,500; Education, Development and Research work, £137,600, or a net figure of £116,100, after making allowance for appropriations-in-aid of £21,500; grants to county committees, £84,100; central work analogous to that of county committees, £115,300, or after allowing for £42,700 as appropriations-in-aid, a net figure of £72,600; purchases of creameries, £60,000; control work, £68,800, or after allowing for appropriations-in-aid of £31,800, a net figure of £37,000. After allowing for receipts amounting to £65,200 (as follows:—Repayments by Creameries of loans, £9,800; Miscellaneous, £750, and Grants from the Local Taxation Account, etc., £54,650, which are not applicable to any of the above groups), these figures give a total Vote of £596,330, and a net Vote of £434,964, referred to in the opening portion of my statement.
