I move:
Go ndeontar suim ná raghaidh thar £1,036,580 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, 1939, chun Tuarastail agus Costaisí Oifig an Aire Tailte agus Oifig Choimisiún Talmhan na hEireann (44 agus 45 Vict., c. 49, a. 46, agus c. 71, a. 4; 48 agus 49 Vict., c. 73, a. 17, 18 agus 20; 53 agus 54 Vict., c. 49, a. 2; 54 agus 55 Vict., c. 48; 3 Edw. 7, c. 37; 7 Edw. 7, c. 38 agus c. 56; 9 Edw. 7, c. 42; Uimh. 27 agus Uimh. 42 de 1923; Uimh. 25 de 1925; Uimh. 11 de 1926; Uimh. 19 de 1927; Uimh. 31 de 1929; Uimh. 11 de 1931; Uimh. 33 agus Uimh. 38 de 1933; Uimh. 11 de 1934; agus Uimh. 41 de 1936.)
That a sum not exceeding £1,036,580 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, 1939, for the Salaries and Expenses of the Offices of the Minister for Lands and of the Irish Land Commission (44 and 45 Vict., c. 49, s. 46, and c. 71, s. 4; 48 and 49 Vict., c. 73, ss. 17, 18 and 20; 53 and 54 Vict., c. 49, s. 2; 54 and 55 Vict., c. 48; 3 Edw. 7, c. 37; 7 Edw. 7, c. 38, and c. 56; 9 Edw. 7, c. 42; Nos. 27 and 42 of 1923; 25 of 1925; 11 of 1926; 19 of 1927; 31 of 1929; 11 of 1931; 33 and 38 of 1933; 11 of 1934, and 41 of 1936).
The amount of the Vote for Lands for the year 1938-39 shows a net decrease of £2,766 on the previous year's total. As compared with the figures for 1937-38, only a few of the sub-heads show any marked variation. The principal increases are under subheads A, B and Q and the largest decrease is under sub-head W. These, and a few other items in which a marked difference occurs, are the only sub-heads which call for comment.
Salaries, wages and allowances under sub-head A are increased by £19,220, mainly due to an increase in the inspectorate staff and to normal additions by way of increments of salary. It is hoped that in due course the addition of 34 inspectors to the staff, as provided for in the Estimate for the financial year 1938-39, will enable the Land Commission to cope with the rearrangement and resale of holdings on the late Congested Districts Board's estates which have had to be postponed owing to pressure of general Land Commission work elsewhere. It will naturally take some time for newly-appointed inspectors to become fully proficient in their various duties. The striping of rundale holdings is a particularly difficult and intricate task for which considerable experience is required.
There is an increase of £3,000 under sub-head B to meet the travelling expenses of the additional inspectors authorised.
There is an increase of £490 under sub-head G—telegrams and telephones. This increase is due mainly to a change in the system of providing for the operation of the telephone service, which has grown beyond the capacity of the Land Commission staff and is now performed by trained telephonists supplied by the Department of Posts and Telegraphs, whose wages come under sub-head G.
Under sub-head H, the payments under Section 11, sub-section 7 of the Land Act, 1923, in respect of interest and sinking fund on Land Bonds issued for the State contribution to the standard price of lands, and for Costs Fund, are increased by £1,000 consequent on normal progress in the purchase of estates of tenanted land.
Under sub-head I—Improvement of Estates, etc.—there is a slight increase of £550 due to the necessity for additional provision for workmen's compensation which (together with some other miscellaneous items) is included under this sub-head. The figure of £700,000 for improvement works proper is maintained.
Out of last year's Vote under sub-head I a total of over £663,000 has been spent. Rather more than half of this expenditure is in respect of buildings—dwellinghouses and out-offices—so that the Land Commission are making a considerable contribution to rural housing. The exact figures for the number of new houses built during the past year are not yet available, but approximately 620 dwellinghouses have been completed by the Land Commission in the year April, 1937, to March, 1938; and in addition the Land Commission have made advances for the building of some 230 houses to supplement grants made by the Local Government Department. The remainder of the expenditure under sub-head I is in respect of general improvements, such as fences, drains and roads and miscellaneous items. Expenditure under this sub-head adds materially to the economic value of the land and provides useful employment in rural areas. The Land Commission now employ some 6,300 workers (gangers and labourers) and their annual wages bill amounts to about £350,000. About three-fourths of the improvement expenditure represents free grants to the tenants and the remainder is by way of advances repayable by annuities.
Under sub-head J—Advance to Meet Deficiency of Income from Untenanted Lands Purchased under Land Acts, 1923-36—there is a decrease of £1,500 as (other than the payment of rates, herds' wages, etc. on lands taken over by the Land Commission and awaiting disposal) provision under this category need now be made only in respect of land bonds representing the purchase prices of untenanted land vested in the Land Commission but not yet allotted—or, if allotted, where the allottees have not been put upon a purchase annuity basis or deemed to have been so put.
Under sub-head Q, the amount provided to meet deficiencies in the Land Bond Fund arising from the revision of the annuities under Part III of the Land Act, 1933, is increased by £12,000, in view of additional advances expected to be made in the coming year and the consequent revision of the annuities by which such advances are repayable, involving a corresponding addition to the deficiency charge.
Under sub-head W—fees payable in connection with proceedings under Section 28 of the Land Act, 1933— whereby provision is made for the lodgment fees and expenses payable to the county registrars or under-sheriffs in respect of proceedings for recovery of arrears of instalments of land purchase annuities and other annual payments due to the Land Commission — there is the large decrease of £24,000. The Vote under this sub-head for the year 1937-38 was unduly swollen by reason of having to include provision for certain lodgment fees applicable to warrants issued in the previous year in connection with the adjustment of the difficulty created by the omission in Section 28, Land Act, 1933, of the specific power to levy sheriff's lodgment fees and expenses in respect of warrants issued by the Land Commission. This omission was rectified by Section 17 of the Land Act, 1936, and it is estimated that a sum of £16,000 should be sufficient for the coming year. The lodgment fees, when recovered from the defaulting annuitants, are credited as an Appropriation-in-Aid of the Vote.
The Appropriations-in-Aid of the Vote are expected to realise in the coming year £11,965 more than last year, of which £6,000 is attributable to excess annuities arising under Section 7 of the Land Bond Act, 1925. These excess annuities accrue in respect of the resale at enhanced prices due to improvements of lands purchased by the Land Commission and the Congested Districts Board under the Land Purchase Acts, and also in respect of the setting up of additional annuities on the exchange of holdings. The remainder of the increased Appropriations-in-Aid consist mainly of fees collected in connection with proceedings under Section 28 of the Land Act, 1933, and miscellaneous receipts.
It is not yet possible to give a comparative review of the proceedings of the Land Commission during the past year, as the final figures for the full year are not available. Generally speaking, however, progress has been maintained in the four main divisions of the work—the acquisition of untenanted land for division, the improvement of estates, the resale of tenanted land and the collection of land purchase annuities. The acquisition of untenanted land has been hindered by a judicial decision against the Land Commission on a point of procedure, and rectification of the present position is under consideration. The division of untenanted land is hampered by the factor already referred to in introducing the Vote for the Land Commission last year—the decrease in the size of the properties which can now be acquired. There is often just as much time and trouble entailed in the acquisition and division of a small estate as of a big one, and the average size of division schemes continues to dwindle. Thus it can hardly be expected that the remarkable achievements of the last few years should be maintained.
The Land Commission hope to push on the resale of holdings to the tenants during the coming year, both on the 1923-36 Act estates and the Congested Districts Board estates, but here again there are grave difficulties to be overcome, as among the residue of the holdings awaiting final resale are some of the most intricate tenures and troublesome conditions.
The position in regard to the collection of land purchase annuities during the past year shows material improvement.
