asked the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries if he is aware that payment for reactors under the brucellosis eradication scheme is rather slow in County Meath; and if he will ensure that payments will be made in about a week or two after the beasts have been removed.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Brucellosis Eradication Scheme.
122.
I am not so aware. Due to the unusually heavy volume of payments to farmers this winter some arrears of reactor payments accumulated but these have now been overtaken.
It is not possible under normal accounting practice to pay for reactors within a week or two of their removal. The normal interval is about three weeks and every effort is made to keep delays to a minimum.
Is the Minister aware that in County Meath it is up to two months before the farmers are paid for reactors?
We are trying to get the normal interval down to three weeks.
Do I take it that from now on a farmer can expect his cheque within three weeks of the date of the cattle going away?
Generally, yes.
What is the reason for the delay in the payment of these when the Parliamentary Secretary has stated that three weeks should be normal for accounting practices.
From a perusal of the Department's records these grants are paid more expeditiously now than they were in the period when the previous Minister was in office.
Would the Parliamentary Secretary agree that it would be more appropriate to say that they are paid now more expeditiously than other forms of agricultural grants are? Is it not true that they are all slowing up.
123.
asked the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries when the brucellosis-free area will be extended.
No decision has been taken as to when the brucellosis-free area will be extended.
Is the Parliamentary Secretary aware that in the areas where it is compulsory at present it is being held up because the full herds have gone down and the Department are still——
The Deputy is giving information.
I am asking if there is any use in extending the scheme when it is being badly handled where it has been in operation. I can prove that in my own county.
The question deals with extensions of a scheme.
On a point of order, surely the question raised by Deputy Callanan is relevant?
That is not a point of order—and the Deputy should know that—at Question Time. The question on the Order Paper is concerned with when the brucellosis-free area will be extended.
That is what I am talking about.
Exactly. He is referring to the extension of the brucellosis-free area, and surely the scheme must be operated within the boundaries——
No. If the Deputy wishes to pursue that line it would mean we could have argument here at Question Time instead of answers and questions.
What I am asking for a ruling on is that I think it unfair to say in relation to a voluntary scheme and the extension of the area, that if a Deputy wants to solicit information relating to the present scheme——
A question on that basis should be put down.
It is relevant.
The Deputy says it is relevant but the Chair says it is not.
On a point of order, if the Chair would allow me—I do not cause a lot of trouble in the House —the relevance of my question was this: Deputy MacSharry's question related to the extension of the scheme and I was asking about the wisdom of extending it, seeing that a bad job was being made of it.
I am glad the Deputy has said that—the wisdom of extending it.
The question relates to when the brucellosis-free area will be extended and the answer is that no decision has been taken. How the scheme operates does not arise from this question, and if there are any complaints about the operation of the scheme and the Deputy submits them to the Department they will be examined.
Question No. 124.
124.
asked the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries when payment for reactor cows belonging to a person (name supplied) in County Meath, which were taken away on 15th December 1974, will be made.
Payment in the case referred to by the Deputy was made on 3rd February.
Congratulations, Deputy. The question succeeded in getting results.
No, the question was received on the 5th February. I would not even mention that had it not been for Deputy Fitzgerald's intervention.
Payment had not come. The question went down on that day.
(Interruptions.)
Question No. 125.