Tairgim:—
Go ndeonfar suim nach mó ná £1,104,090 chun slánuithe na suime is gá chun íoctha an Mhuirir a thiocfas chun bheíth iníoctha i rith na bliana dar críoch an 31ú lá de Mhárta, 1954, chun Tuarastal agus Costas Oifig an Aire Tailte agus Oifig Choimisiún Talún na hÉireann (44 & 45 Vict., c. 49, alt 46, agus c. 71, alt 4; 48 & 49 Vict., c. 73, ailt 17, 18 agus 20; 54 & 55 Vict., c. 48; 3 Edw. 7, c. 37; 7 Edw. 7, c. 38 agus c. 56; 9 Edw. 7, c. 42; Uimha. 27 agus 42 de 1923; Uimh. 25 de 1925; Uimh. 11 de 1926; Uimh. 19 de 1927; Uimh. 31 de 1929; Uimh. 11 de 1931; Uimha. 33 agus 38 de 1933; Uimh. 11 de 1934; Uimh. 41 de 1936; Uimh. 26 de 1939; Uimh. 12 de 1946; Uimh. 25 de 1949; agus Uimh. 16 de 1950).
That a sum not exceeding £1,104,090 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, 1954, for the Salaries and Expenses of the Offices of the Minister for Lands and of the Irish Land Commission(44 & 45 Vict., c. 49, sec. 46, and c. 71, sec. 4; 48 & 49 Vict., c. 73, secs. 17, 18 and 20; 54 & 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; No. 25 of 1925; No. 11 of 1926; No. 19 of 1927; No. 31 of 1929; No. 11 of 1931; Nos. 33 and 38 of 1933; No. 11 of 1934; No. 41 of 1936; No. 26 of 1939; No. 12 of 1946; No. 25 of 1949; and No. 16 of 1950.
Tabharfaidh an Teach faoi deara go bhfuil sa Mheastachán glan, £1,918,930, don Roinn Tailte le haghaidh na bliana seo £117,460, de mhéadú ar an méid iomlán a vótáladh anuraidh. Faoi na fo-mhírchinn A agus I is mó a tharla an méadú sin.
Fo-mhírcheann A—£553,669: Faoin bhfo-mhírcheann seo, a bhaineas le tuarastail, páigh agus liúntaisí, tá £20,968 de bhreis ar an méid bunaidh a vótaladh anuraidh nó £33,463 de bhreis ar an vóta glan tar eís airgead a spáráladh d'úsaid chun críocha eile sa Mheastachán Forlíontach. An gnáthmhéadú ar thuarastail agus páigh is cúis leis an mbreis sin. Chomh maith leis sin tá soláthar ann i gcóir seachtar cigirí lena gcur in ionad oifigeach a tugadh ar iasacht le haghaidh oibre éile; ceapfar na digirí sin a luaithe is féidir. Ceapadh 22 cigiré nua i rith na bliana seo caite chun folúntais a líonadh.
Fo-mhírcheann B—£37,000: Tá méadú £5,000 faoin bhfo-mhírcheann seo mar gheall ar ardú ar na rátaí, na liúntas taistil agus cothuithe, faoi mar a húdaraíodh roint mhí ó shoin agus mar gheall ar an obair lasmuigh do dhul i méid de bharr cigirí breise a cheapadh.
Fo-mhírcheann E—£9,500; Déantar soláthar anseo le haghaidh na gcostas dlíthiúla a bhaineas le Brainse an Aturnae, lena n-áirítear costais únaeraí agus tionóntaí atá iníoctha ag Coimisiún na Talún in imeachta chun talamh a thogaint agus d'athghabháil. Tá meastachán na blíana seo £500 níos lú ná an soláthar iomlán a rinneadh i Meastachán bunaidh agus i Meastachán Forlíontach na bliana seo caite.
Fo-mhírchinn H1, H2 agus H3— £800,500. Tá breis agus 40% den Mheastachán glan don Roinn Tailte curtha in áirithe do na fo-mhírchinn seo chun easnaimh áirithe i gCiste na mBannaí Talún a shlánú. Leanann na heasnaimh seo as dhá leath a dhéanamh de bhlianachtaí, sin suim £667,400 sa bhliain seo, agus as cabhair eile ón Stát chun talamh a cheannach, e.g., ciste costas agus bónas reachtúil do dhaoine a dhíolas eastát de bhreis agus de bharr ar an bpraghas is iníoctha ag na tionóntaí a cheannaíos iad.
Na híocaíochtaí a déantar i leith úis agus ciste fiachmhúchta is muirir aisfhillteacha iad agus, do réir mar bhéas socrú na talún ag dui ar aghaidh, cruthnaítear muirir nua a bheir méadú i bhfo-mhírchinn H 1 agus H 3; meastar go dtabharfaidh roínnt na mblianachtaí £8,900 de mhéadú i mbliana i bhfo-mhírcheann H.
Fo-mhírcheann I—£615,000: Faoin bhfo-mhircheann seo soláthraítear cistí chun eastáit d'fheabhsú agus de ghnáth is gá chuige sin foirgintí d'athchóiriú, bóithre, claíocha, silteáin, etc. a dhéanamh. Is é an fo-mhircheann seo is fearr a léiríos an méid oibre atá á dhéanamh maidir le socrú talún. Toise a bhfuil á dhéanamh chun an cúngrach i gcúrsaí talún a laghdú trí dhaoine d'aistriú agus trí ghabháltas d'athshocrú, bíonn costas mór ag baint leis an bhfo-mhírcheann seo, go háirithe ar fhoirgintí. Anuraidh méadaíodh an vóta bunaidh, £480,000, trí £80,000 sa bhreis a sholáthar agus caitheadh é go léir is é sin £560,000; sin an méid is mó a caitheadh riamh ó 1939/40 i leith agus níor sáraíodh an tsuim sin ach sa bhliain sin agus sna trí bliana roimhe. I mbliana táimid ag brath ar thuilleadh fós a chaitheamh agus tá méadú £55,000 sa bhfo-mhírcheann chuige sin. An méid atá dá iarraidh, £615,000, is ionann é beagnach agus an tríú cuid den ghlan-Mheastachán don Roinn. Ach ní hamháin gur gné fíor-riachtanach de shocrú na talún na hoibreacha feabhsuithe ach ina theannta sin cuirtear a lán fostáiochta ar fáil dá mbarr sna ceantair chúnga.
Fo-mhírcheann K—£500. Tá soláthar i bhfo-mhírcheann K le haghaidheasnamh a tharlaíos nuair a híoctar éilimh Stáit i mbannaí talún do réir ainm-luach iomlán bannaí a díoltar faoi lascaine. Anuraidh híocadh roinnt éileamh móra ar an geaoi sin agus bhí gá le soláthar mór £2,000 faoin mírcheann. Tá laghdú £1,500 dá réir sin ar an Meastachán i mbliana. Mar is eol do na Teachtaí, tá an Bille Talún (Uimh. 2), 1952, atá anois os comhair an tSeanaid, ceaptha lena dheimhniú go bhfanfaidh sreathanna nua bannaí talún ag par nó gar dó ar feadh tréimhse réasúnta tar éis a geruthuithe.
Fo-mhírcheann N—£5,840: Tá soláthar faoi fho-mhírcheann N i gcóir £5,532 de bhreis sna suimeana caipitiúla a hairleacfar chun cistí a bhunú le caladhphoirt agus oibreacha eile a chothabháil. Ní bhíonn an caiteachas céanna faoin bhfo-mhírcheann seo i gceist gach bliain, agus ní hionann an méid airgid a bhíos ag teastáil ó bhliain go bliain. Is de bharr súil a bheith le bunú dhá chiste thábhachtacha i mbliana atá an soláthar méadaithe.
Fo-mhírcheann Q—£1,300: Slánaítear as fo-mhírcheann Q easnaimh áirithe i gcistí de leithéid Chiste na nIasacht Aitiúla agus Ciste na mBannaí Talún. Tarlaíonn na heasnaimh sin ar íocaíochtaí chun na gcistí sin ar thailte a thóg Coimisiún na Talún d'fhorceannadh. Cuirtear blianachtaí nua ar na tailte in ionad na n-íocaíochtaí a forceannadh. Is muirear bliantúil carnaítheach an muirear ar fho-mhírcheann Q agus tá coinne le méadú £650 i mbliana.
Fo-mhírcheann R—£20,000: Bhí an tsuim £20,000 a cuireadh ar fáil anuraidh faoi fho-mhírcheann R, chun talamh a cheannach ar ceantanna agus trí ghnóthaíocht phríobháideach, iomarcach agus baineadh £5,000, a measadh a sábhálfaí, aisti tríd an Mheastachán Forlíontach; tá an tsuim iomlán á soláthar aris i mbliana. Anuraidh ceannaíodh 11 ghabháltas ina raibh 328 acraí; is é sin le rá gur ceannaíodh san iomlán, ó ritheadh an tAcht Talún, 1950, 16 ghabháltas ina raibh 519 acraí. Níl an oiread talún le fáil ag Coimisiún na Talún ar an modh seo agus ceapadh.
Fo-mhírcheann S—£2,500: Tá méadú £500 ar fho-mhírcheann S thar an nglan-tsoláthar a rinneadh anuraidh chun aiscí d'íoc le daoine a cuireadh as fostaíocht de bharr gníomhartha Choimisiún na Talún. Do híocadh aiscí dár mhéid £2,288 anuraidh le hocht nduine dhéag a cuireadh as fostaíocht. O ritheadh an tAcht Talún, 1950, go dtí deireadh Márta, 1953, tugadh aiscí dár mhéid £5,904 do chaoga duine, is é sin meán £118 an duine. Is ábhar eiscithe atá faoi chúram na gCoimisinéirí cinneadh méid aon aisce den tsórt sin a chinneadh.
The House will notice that the net Estimate of £1,918,930 for lands for the current year shows an increase of £117,460 over the total amount— original and supplementary—voted last year. The increase arises mainly under sub-heads A and I.
Sub-head A—£553,669: Under sub-head A, for salaries, wages and allowances, the increase is £20,968 on the amount originally voted last year or £35,463 on the net Vote after savings had been applied for other purposes in the Supplementary Estimate. This increase is chiefly due to normal incremental increases in salaries and wages. There is also provision for seven additional inspectors to replace officers seconded for other work; these inspectors will be appointed as speedily as possible. To fill vacancies 22 inspectors were newly recruited during the past year.
Sub-head B—£37,000: An increase of £5,000 under sub-head B is due to higher rates of travelling and subsistence allowances authorised some months ago and to increased outdoor activity following the recruitment of additional inspectors.
Sub-head E—£9,500: Sub-head E provides for the incidental legal expenses of the solicitor's branch including costs of owners and tenants payable by the Land Commission in proceedings for the acquisition and resumption of land. The current year's Estimate shows a reduction of £500 on the total provision made in last year's original and Supplementary Estimates.
Sub-heads H (1), H (2) and H (3)— £800,500: More than 40 per cent. of thenet Estimate for Lands is allocated to sub-heads H (1), H (2) and H (3) for making good certain deficiencies in the Land Bond Fund. These deficiencies arise from the halving of annuities, amounting to £667,400 in the current year, and from other State aids to land purchase, e.g., costs fund and statutory bonus to vendors of estates over and above the price payable by the tenant purchasers. The payments in respect of interest and sinking fund on land bonds are recurring charges and, as the land settlement programme proceeds, additional charges are created which result in increases in sub-heads H (1) and H (3); the estimated increase this year in sub-head H (3) for halving of annuities is £8,900.
Sub-head I—£615,000: Under sub-head I funds are provided for the improvement of estates and generally this involves the erection and reconditioning of buildings, construction of roads, fences, drains, etc. This sub-head, more than any other, reflects the extent of land settlement activities. Concentration on the relief of congestion by migration and rearrangement involves heavy expenditure under this sub-head, particularly on buildings. Last year the original Vote of £480,000 was supplemented by a further provision of £80,000 and the total of £560,000 was fully spent; this expenditure was the highest since 1939/40 and was exceeded only in that and the three preceding years. This year a still higher target is aimed at and the sub-head shows an increase of £55,000. The amount sought, £615,000, represents almost one-third of the net Estimate for Lands. The improvement works, however, not only form an essential part of land settlement operations but also provide a substantial amount of employment in the congested districts.
Sub-head K—£500: Sub-head K provides for deficiencies which arise when State claims are met in land bonds at the full nominal value of bonds which are sold at a discount. Last year a few large claims met in this way necessitated an exceptional provision of £2,000 under the sub-head. The Estimate of £500 for the current year therefore shows a reduction of £1,500. As Deputies are aware, the Land (No. 2)Bill, 1952, now before the Seanad, is designed to secure that future series of land bonds will remain at or near par for a reasonable time after their creation.
Sub-head N—£5,840: An increase of £5,532 in the capital sums to be advanced for the establishment of funds for the maintenance of embankments and other works is provided for in sub-head N. Expenditure under this sub-head is non-recurring and the requirements fluctuate from year to year. Two important funds which are expected to be set up this year account for the increased provision.
Sub-head Q—1,300: Certain deficiencies in funds such as the Local Loans Fund and Land Bond Fund are made good out of sub-head Q. These deficiencies arise on the termination of payments charged on lands taken over by the Land Commission and destined for such funds. The payments terminated are replaced by new annuities on the lands. The charge to sub-head Q is recurring and cumulative and an increase of £650 is expected this year.
Sub-head R—£20,000: The sum of £20,000 provided last year under sub-head R, for the purchase of land at auctions and by private treaty, proved to be in excess of requirements and an estimated saving of £5,000 was deducted in connection with the Supplementary Estimate; this amount is being restored for the current year. Last year 11 holdings containing 328 acres were purchased bringing the total since the passing of the Land Act, 1950, to 16 holdings containing 519 acres. This source of land for Land Commission purposes is not proving as fruitful as originally expected.
Sub-head S—£2,500: Sub-head S shows an increase of £500 over last year's net provision for the payment of gratuities to persons displaced from employment by Land Commission operations. Gratuities amounting to £2,288 were paid last year to 18 ex-employees. From the passing of the Land Act, 1950, to the end of March, 1953, 50 persons had been awardedgratuities amounting to £5,904 which represents an average of £118 per person. The determination of the amount of any such gratuity is an excepted matter reserved to the commissioners.
Other sub-heads: The amounts being provided under the other sub-heads of the Vote vary, if at all, to a small extent from last year's figures. As these sub-heads do not seem to call for any special comment at this stage, I shall pass on to deal, in a more general way, with the activities of the Land Commission for the completion of land purchase and land settlement.
Vesting: With a view to accelerating the completion of land purchase by vesting in tenants and allottees, the Vesting Branches of the Land Commission were reorganised within the past seven years. Holdings, allotments and rights of turbary vested in the meantime exceed 100,000 which represents almost half the total vesting output of the past 30 years. As a result of this very creditable progress, the number of outstanding cases has been reduced to about 55,000 (including rights of turbary). Unfortunately, a large percentage of these cases require rearrangement, improvement, or clarification of title and settlement of boundaries before vesting. As the elimination of these obstacles will prove tedious, vesting cannot in future be expected to proceed with the same rapidity as in recent years. Last year's vestings numbered more than 13,300, made up of 7,257 holdings, 4,315 parcels and 1,801 rights of turbary. For the current year it is expected that the vesting output will exceed 10,000 cases.
Land Settlement, 1952/53: In the sphere of land settlement, the Land Commission are concentrating on the relief of congestion and particularly the rearrangement of intermixed holdings in the scheduled congested districts. With a view to making land available for these purposes, preliminary reports were obtained during the year ended 31st March last in respect of 42,000 acres of land while detailed inspections and valuations were made of 47,900 acres. Inevitably, considerable areas proved to be unsuitable or unavailablefor Land Commission purposes. Acquisition or resumption proceedings were initiated for 23,800 acres and at the end of the year the Land Commission had proceedings in respect of 61,000 acres. During the year the Land Commission took over 28,800 acres of land for allotment purposes and allotted an area of 25,300 acres to over 1,700 allottees. Of these 1,700 allottees about 1,000 were smallholders who had their holdings improved by enlargement and a further 400 tenants had their holdings rearranged and enlarged into compact working units. An additional 144 were migrated to new holdings in non-congested areas. Thus during the past year some 1,500 congests were provided for. Were it not for the inability of some contractors to complete buildings before the end of the financial year and the last-minute refusal of certain selected tenants to migrate, a further 47 holdings comprising about 2,000 acres would have been allotted to migrants last year; most of these have since been allotted.
Migration is a difficult and slow process but it is an essential feature of land settlement as there is little untenanted land left in the congested districts for the enlargement of the smallholdings there. The solution of the problem in the congested districts lies therefore in the acquisition of land in non-congested areas, the striping of the land into economic holdings, the equipment of each holding with a dwelling, out-offices, fences, water-supply, access, the migration of tenants from the congested districts to such holdings and finally the utilisation of the migrants' surrendered lands for the enlargement and rearrangement of adjacent smallholdings, which, in turn, generally require improvement of buildings, etc. None of these stages can be speedily completed; land acquisition has to proceed under statutory provisions with due allowance for objections and appeals. The circumstances of uneconomic holders and others affected have to be carefully investigated. Buildings take time to erect. In fact, all stages of the work require competent and tactful handling from beginning to end. Inevitably, in the lay-out of any congested townland there are "key"holdings, the acquisition of which by the Land Commission would greatly facilitate rearrangement and give general satisfaction, but these holdings can only be secured by migration as a general rule. Consequently, before migrants are selected from an area, it is necessary to establish which are the "key" holdings and this entails careful inquiry as well as the framing of tentative proposals to discover how resettlement can best be effected. If the tenant of a "key" holding is willing to migrate, well and good, but if he is unwilling, alternative selections may have to be made, involving the recasting of proposals and, unfortunately, this often leads to disappointments, misunderstandings, and unmerited criticism of the officials entrusted with this difficult work.
In some congested townlands if the "key" holdings become available, conditions can be remedied simply by providing enlargements, without the need for rearrangements at all. Where this is possible so much the better. The primary consideration in the selection of a migrant must therefore be the use which can be made of his surrendered lands but it will be obvious that the personal circumstances of the migrant and his family will also be of considerable importance.
Sub-division: The principal cause of the acute congestion which exists in some areas is the excessive and uncontrolled sub-division of holdings which took place in the days of the landlords. Not alone were small holdings sub-divided among members of families but individual fields were divided to give each member a portion of the good as well as the poor land. Extreme sub-division resulted in the condition of unfenced intermixed plots known as rundale. To prevent the creation of further congestion in this manner, the Land Commission were empowered to control the sub-division of holdings and this branch of the non-productive work of the Land Commission is of the utmost importance. Were control not carefully exercised, there would be the anomaly of the Land Commission relieving congestion at considerable expense while further congestion was being created without restraint. In fact, if sub-divisionwere unrestricted, holdings created for the relief of congestion could be broken up into several uneconomic or congested holdings which in turn would require enlargement and perhaps rearrangement. By the judicious exercise of their power to refuse consent to sub-division, the Land Commission every year prevent the creation of many uneconomic holdings; it is essential that this control should be continued. Applications for consent to sub-division in 3,289 cases were dealt with last year and 70 were refused.
The position as regards the collection of annuities continues to be highly satisfactory. The arrear at the 31st March last was £152,000 or .3 per cent. (point three of one per cent.) of the total amount collectable since 1953.
Before passing from this review of the Land Commission activities, I should like to pay a tribute to the inspectorate staff. A Land Commission inspector's job is no sinecure. His duties are many and varied, requiring technical knowledge, skill, patience and tact. He must be competent to value land, define boundaries, frame schemes of resettlement, plan and estimate for all types of improvement works and carry out delicate negotiations with cautious and often recalcitrant tenants. His is the impossible task of trying to satisfy everybody. Anxiety to carry out his duties as effectively and satisfactorily as possible often leads to long hours of arduous work. The good progress made by the Land Commission in the work I have outlined, is largely due to the ability and industry of the inspectors in the field.
Deputies will realise from this brief survey that very satisfactory progress was made last year in all spheres of Land Commission activity. Much still remains to be done for the relief of congestion and, for the current year, we all look forward to solid and sustained achievement. The importance of the work needs no emphasis. The necessary funds are provided in the Estimate which I now recommend to the House.