asked the Minister for Lands if he will indicate when farmers paying annuities under the early LandActs can hope to have the full contributions redeemed.
Ceisteanna — Questions. Oral Answers. - Land Annuities.
The period of repayment of any land purchase annuity is subject to variation. Such variation may arise from the consolidation of holdings, the addition of a funding annuity under the Land Act, 1933, or the charging of an additional annuity in repayment of an improvement or reclamation advance. In regard to annuities set up under the Acts 1881 to 1896, there is the additional complication of the decadal reductions, the acceptance of which extended the normal period of repayment up to 79 years. Thus, while many annuities set up under the earlier Acts have expired, many other annuities set up at the same time have still some years to run. In other words, the period of repayment in any case depends on the particular circumstances of that case and, even at this stage, may be subject to future variation.
We can take it from the Minister's reply that all this talk about having done away with the repayment of the annuities was all bunkum?
Nobody ever suggested that. They were halved.
They were trebled.