asked the Minister for Lands if he will state, in respect of each county and province in Saorstát Eireann, the total amount of the charges paid, or to be paid, by the State in connection with the creation and assignment of new holdings of untenanted land under the Land Acts, 1923-33, during the year 1934, specifying the main headings under which such charges were incurred and the total amount of the charge under each such heading, and the gross total of these charges.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - The State and New Holdings.
I have made detailed inquiry into the system of recording the sanctions for improvement works carried out by the Land Commission on the division of untenanted land and I find that it would be impracticable to supply the information which the Deputy desires without the expenditure of such time and labour as would be out of all proportion to the value of the information.
I am always prepared to give Deputies any particulars which the statistical returns of the Land Commission can supply, as that is simply a matter of taking out figures for particular periods and I am ready if necessary, to very the methods of compiling statistics so as to secure additional information in regard to future operations. But the present question calls for information which is not available. The statistical returns of the Land Commission do not disclose the cost of creating and equipping new holdings as distinct from enlargements on the division of estates. The records of improvement sanctions and expenditure are kept by estates as a whole and the totals of expenditure are periodically assembled by counties, but those totals are not segregated under the heads of new holdings and enlargements, and moreover they include expenditure incurred on the resale of estates acquired by the late Congested Districts Board and the Estates Commission as well as on the lands to which the question refers, i.e., lands acquired under the 1923-33 Land Acts.
In order to obtain the information desired by the Deputy it would be necessary first to ascertain the name and record number of every estate divided in the year 1934 under the Land Acts 1923 and 1933, and there were nearly 400 of such estates. Secondly, every resale scheme relative to these estates would have to be collected. Thirdly, every single allotment of a new holding as distinct from an enlargement on these estates would have to be scrutinised in order to ascertain the relative improvement expenditure. When all this was done and the totals added, the result would be far from showing the true position, as on estates divided there is necessarily considerable expenditure for general improvements such as drainage, roads, etc., which would have to be apportioned in order to find out the total cost of the creation and assignment of new holdings. I cannot see my way to divert the Land Commission staff from their normal duties to compile such an involved return.
Am I to understand from the Parliamentary Secretary that, in the policy of creating new holdings out of untenanted land, the Fianna Fáil Government in this as in other of their policies are not prepared to count the cost, and that in respect of what is a big subdivision of land to a large number of new families put in as new holders, the Dáil cannot be informed as to the annual cost of that policy?
I have already explained to the Deputy the difficulties which are in the way of segregating the cost of new holdings as distinct from enlargements on any particular estate. If you have to multiply the estates by 400, the Deputy will realise the amount of labour which would be involved in going back over all these different estates to ascertain these costs.
Surely, if the Parliamentary Secretary thinks for a moment he must realise that nothing he has said suggests that there are difficulties which a few clerks could not overcome, and that it is important that this House should know the cost of creating new holdings out of untenanted land for people who were not holders of land before.
It is a far more important thing to create the holdings.
It seems to be a very important thing to hide information about a major policy.