asked the Minister for Supplies whether a supplementary allowance of paraffin will be given to farmers to enable them to carry out their work during the winter months.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Paraffin Allowance for Farmers.
To enable farmers to carry out their work during the winter months supplies of kerosene for the operation of agricultural tractors and other types of farm machinery will be made available on application by the owners of such machinery. The question of the provision of supplementary allowances does not arise.
In common with other classes of the community farmers whose premises are not equipped with gas or electricity may register with their usual retailer for the normal monthly ration allowed for domestic use. Farmers whose domestic premises are equipped with gas or electricity may similarly register in respect of outhouses used as stables for any kind of animals, where such outhouses are not equipped with gas or electricity. I regret that the limited quantity of kerosene available for distribution does not permit of the issue of supplementary allowances for domestic use to farmers generally.
Does the Minister realise the position of farmers at the present time, especially during the winter months? Does not everybody know that daylight ends at about 5 o'clock? How is a farmer with ten horses to feed his horses after the day's work is over and to look after cows in outhouses if he has not some sort of light? Do I take it that the Minister is definitely not going to give any supplementary allowance to farmers to carry on the feeding of cattle? Does the Minister further realise that the basic ration of a gallon for families is operating very unfairly as regards the farming community? The Minister knows very well that in a good many households there is no such thing as cattle, etc., to attend to in the early morning and late at night. Will he not consider giving a supplementary allowance of kerosene to farmers who can put up a case for it—and I think most of them can do that?
The Deputy's questions are all beside the point. I am as fully aware as the Deputy of the hardship caused by the shortage of kerosene, but merely deploring the shortage is not going to remedy the situation. The total quantity that is available is less than half of the amount normally used and the maximum quantity possible is being distributed. The reason that there is not more being distributed is that there is no more to distribute. If more becomes available it will be distributed, but unless it becomes available it cannot be distributed to the farmers.
Would it be practicable, from the Minister's point of view and from the supply point of view, to consider making some supplementary allowance in cases where persons have large numbers of cattle or live stock to attend to? The Minister will see readily that, where you have a large number of cattle in byres, to expect the man who is fattening cattle to go out into a byre and feed them or milk them in black darkness is virtually impossible. While a gallon per household is designed for domestic purposes would it not be administratively possible, on an industrial basis, to treat farmers' outhouses as industrial premises and to give them an allowance in respect of live stock, to be used in outhouses?
It will be possible, I think, to make some supplementary allowance to farmers who supply fresh milk to towns—that is, to dairykeepers—and, possibly, in other exceptional cases; but, of course, if the number of exceptional cases should prove to be substantial, then the supplies would not be available. It is only by keeping the number of exceptional cases down to the minimum that it is possible to do it. We have decided to give a supplementary allowance to dairymen.
Is the Minister aware that there are others as well as farmers who supply milk to towns? Every available minute of daylight is used on the land and they have to work in the early morning and at night, attending to cattle and horses and the feeding of live stock. There is an allowance of a gallon common to every household, but there are numbers of households where there is no night work or early morning work. Will the Minister not consider that the farmer who is employed all day on the land and who must do the other work with the aid of artificial light, is entitled to some extra allowance?
All the kerosene that comes in will be distributed, but we must have regard primarily to the requirements of the productive side of agriculture. During the last year we stopped the supply for domestic purposes in order to ensure a supply for tractors and other agricultural machinery. The demands for fuel for this purpose were higher last year than normally and that is likely to continue. We must have regard to the use of kerosene in distributing the total quantity available for distribution, but all the surplus that can be made available for domestic use will be made available.
I appreciate the Minister's difficulty, but will he realise that, while fuel is a necessity for tractors, it is also vitally necessary and equally important to put food into the beast and to take milk out of the beast, and that that is just as important as ploughing the land? I fully appreciate the administrative and supply difficulties with which the Minister is confronted, but I would suggest that he look at that aspect of the question more sympathetically than heretofore.
There is another aspect that I want to put to the Minister. Is he aware that there are tractors using petrol within two miles of a station, in hauling beet to the station, whilst the farmers who are growing the beet have horses idle in the fields? Would he also be aware of tractors used for the purpose of hauling sand within a reasonable distance from the seashore, where again there are men with horses idle in the fields? We can see that, where sand must be hauled long distances, the horses could not haul it inland very far and the oil may be needed for that long distance haulage; but there are people convenient to the strand who have used it for such purposes—and I know that is so. Would he see that there will be no abuse of this sort and that horses will be used, and not petrol, for purposes like that? That would leave more paraffin for the other purposes for which we are looking for it.
Has the Minister realised that, in the dairy counties, a light of some sort is necessary in dairying work in the early morning and late at night? There are cases where a naked light such as a candle is not the best form of light—especially in cases where one is feeding straw or hay, where it may be dangerous. There might be a substitute possible in some other cases, but where one has to attend cattle with hay or straw, even if candles are available—which they are not—they are not a suitable substitute for the covered light of a paraffin lamp. Would the Minister make some investigation and see whether it would not be possible to make some small provision of paraffin for people who have to work at dairying in the early morning and late at night?
I am fully aware of that.
Would the Minister consider granting a supplementary allowance—even until the middle of January, when we will have daylight up to 5 or 6 o'clock?
Say, until Candlemas Day?
There is no use in the Deputy appealing to me to do something I cannot do. I cannot distribute kerosene which is not in the country.
I am not at all satisfied that it cannot be given for that purpose, which is as much production as anything else.
But where will we take it from? We cannot give it to one class of consumer unless we take it from some other class. Which class will we take it from?
It is common knowledge that there are turf lorry owners selling it at 8/- a gallon.
I got only one quart under the Minister's ration.