asked the Minister for Labour what action the Government propose to take to arrest the drift from the land in view of the latest figures which show that the overall number of farm workers dropped from 360,000 to 301,000 in the last six years; and if the Government have done, or propose to do, any research to ascertain where these people go when they leave the land.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Drift from Land.
37.
The Economic and Social Research Institute are already engaged at my request in a research project on the mobility of labour within the country.
The reduction in the number of persons engaged in agriculture is not peculiar to Ireland. As the Report on Full Employment points out, it is a feature of member countries of the OECD and is a trend which is expected to continue for some years.
As the Deputy is aware, the Government provides substantial grants, loans and other facilities to agriculture. As far as persons wishing to leave the land are concerned, the aim of the Government's development policy will continue to be to provide alternative job opportunities for them. This is one of the principal objectives of the Government's industrial development programme. The facilities for training, placement and resettlement which are being developed under the Government's manpower policy are also available to them.
Is there not now evidence that the number of workers on the land has reached such a low level that the Noxious Weeds Act cannot be enforced? Even on main roads, which were always attended to, one sees vast quantities of an buachaillín buí, thistles and so on, right through the summer and autumn.
That is not a matter for the Minister.
There is no buachaillín buí in Donegal.
In County Donegal, the Minister's own county, there is a very bad example of weeds, particularly of buachaillín buí, and this is all due to lack of labour.
I do not think it is due to lack of labour.
Do local authority employees classify as agricultural labourers?
No.
They are the people who would do the cutting.
In some cases, yes.