asked the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries the reasons for the decrease of 20 per cent in cereal acreage this year, with particular reference to wheat and feeding barley.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Cereal Acreage.
16.
The estimated cereals acreage for 1974 based on sales of seed indicates a reduction of 6 per cent on the 1973 acreage and not 20 per cent as stated by the Deputy. The reduction of about 6 per cent and 12 per cent respectively in the acreage under wheat and feeding barley was due mainly to the extremely unfavourable weather conditions which persisted from January into March and held up ploughing and soil preparation generally.
The decline in feeding barley was largely offset by an increase of about 30 per cent in the acreage contracted for malting barley.
I am sure the Parliamentary Secretary is aware that on more than one occasion in this House the Minister strongly exhorted and advised farmers to produce far more wheat and far more feeding barley. The fact that we now have the percentage reductions mentioned by the Parliamentary Secretary clearly shows that they have no confidence whatsoever in the Minister or the Parliamentary Secretary.
That is not a question.
That is not so.
Next question.
Blame the weather when things go wrong.
Last week they said it was too dry.
(Interruptions.)
Do not make it worse. You have it destroyed between the two of you.
Deputy Collins would like to see farming declining.
What the Parliamentary Secretary said about weather conditions and their effect on sowings simply is not true. I should know because I am in the business.
The Deputy is engaging in argument rather than asking a supplementary question. Next question please.
Give us a chance.
We are making no progress.
How are we to get information if we do not get it here at Question Time?
(Interruptions.)
You do not have to protect them that much.
There is no question of protecting anyone and Deputy Collins knows that. The Chair is concerned about making some appreciable progress.
A supplementary and a half and then you shout for the next question because the Parliamentary Secretary is not able to answer the question asked by Deputy Gibbons.
The Deputy knows we have made no progress today at Question Time.
You have not got a stop-watch.
The Chair is concerned to have all Members' questions answered.
Deputies put down questions in order to get hard concrete information.
Question No. 17.
This is not good enough.