asked the Minister for Agriculture if he will state (a) the cost to the Exchequer to date of the Bovine Tuberculosis Eradication Scheme, (b) the current annual cost, (c) the estimated total cost, and (d) the breakdown of the figures for (a), (b) and (c) under the headings (i) compensation to farmers, (ii) veterinary costs and (iii) general administrative costs.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Bovine Tuberculosis Eradication Scheme.
10.
As the reply is of a lengthy nature and includes a tabular statement, it is proposed with your permission, a Cheann Chomhairle, to circulate it in the Official Report.
The following is the statement:—
(a) The latest accounting date for which figures are available is the 31st March, 1959. Up to that date the total cost of the Scheme, excluding salaries and staff expenses, was £4,183,040. As an allocation of £700,000 was received from the Grant Counterpart Fund and a sum of £1,653,669 from the sale of reactors the net cost to the Exchequer was £1,829,371.
(b) The estimated expenditure for the current financial year is £3,500,000. As £1,680,000 is expected from the sale of reactors the net estimated cost for the year is £1,820,000.
(c) It is not possible at this stage to estimate the total ultimate cost of the Scheme.
(d) The breakdown of the gross expenditure given for (a) and (b) is as follows:—
|
(a) |
(b) |
|
|
(i) compensation to farmers for reactors |
£2,484,169 |
£2,520,000 |
|
supplementary byre grants and water supplies grants |
476,694 |
85,000 |
|
£2,960,863 |
£2,605,000 |
|
|
(ii) fees to veterinary surgeons |
£1,081,791 |
£785,000 |
|
(iii) general administrative costs, excluding salaries and staff expenses |
£140,386 |
£110,000 |
As regards salaries and staff expenses, these are charged to a single account for the Department as a whole and the expense and official time which would be involved in the extraction of separate figures for the Bovine Tuberculosis Eradication Scheme would not, in my opinion, be justified.