asked the Minister for Finance whether he has received representations that some of the months selected for the carrying out of public works should be left free for tillage and ancillary operations; and, in particular, that the months of April, May and June should be substituted for January, February and March; and if he will cause inquiry to be made for the purpose of ascertaining whether and to what extent the present arrangements interfere with tillage and seashore activities.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Carrying Out of Public Works.
The Employment Period Orders render ineligible each year large numbers of rural workers for the receipt of unemployment assistance between the second week of March and the end of October and the maximum activity on employment schemes is, therefore, confined to the period mid-November to mid-March.
Exhaustive inquiries into the matter raised by the Deputy were made some years ago, when it was found that it was only in a small number of cases in Connemara that employment schemes were interfering to any appreciable degree with agricultural operations. Since then general instructions have been issued each year to close down works when they are in danger of interfering with the requirements of agriculture, and to release individual workers who wish to attend to their holdings. For these reasons I do not consider further inquiries are necessary, but I shall keep the matter under review.