asked the Minister for Agriculture the amount of salary and other expenses each member of Bord na gCon has received and the amount spent on entertainment since the inception of the Board up to and including 31st October, 1961; and if he will give the similar amounts received by the members of An Bord Rásaíochta (Racing Board) for the same period.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Salaries and Expenses of Bord na gCon and An Bord Rásaíochta.
14.
My function under the Greyhound Industry Act in this connection is to determine, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, the remuneration and allowances for expenses to be paid by Bord na gCon to the Chairman and the six ordinary members of the Board. At 31st October, 1961, these were:—
Remuneration:
Chairman (whole-time) £2,500 per annum.
Ordinary Members (part-time), £250 per annum.
Allowances for Expenses:
Chairman: Out-of-pocket expenses in respect of journeys on the business of the Board away from the Board's headquarters at the rates applicable for the time being to the highest grades of the Civil Service and actual entertainment expenses incurred by him in connection with the business of the Board.
Ordinary Members: Out-of-pocket expenses in respect of journeys on the business of the Board (including attendance at meetings of the Board and any committees of the Board) at the rates applicable for the time being to the highest grades of the Civil Service.
I have no function in regard to the remuneration or expenses of the members of An Bord Rásaíochta.
I wonder would the Minister be in a position to answer the question put to him. I asked specifically for the amount of expenses given to each member of Bord na gCon. I have not got that figure. I got a relative figure with regard to high-class civil servants and I am not satisfied with that. Does the Minister also know that the members of the Racing Board, who work and travel voluntarily, carry the respect and confidence of the people associated with the business, of whom I am one, and that the people running Bord na gCon which has been constituted on a political basis carries neither the respect——
The Deputy must relate his remarks to the Question he has put down.
I want to get a specific figure as to the expenses incurred by the Chairman of Bord na gCon and other members of the Board.
I have given the reply in accordance with what I thought was the information sought, the basis on which expenses are paid.
I want the specific figure.
I am not obliged to make any comment as to the respectability——
We all know that.
——of the members of the two boards mentioned by the Deputy.