asked the Minister for Agriculture the number of cattle headage payments outstanding (i) for the entire country on (a) 31 December 1979, and (b) the latest available date; (ii) and for south-west Cork (a) on 31 December 1979, and (b) the latest available date.
Written Answers. - Cattle Headage Payments.
53.
Out of 70,042 applications received for cattle headage grants in 1979, 20,303 remained to be dealt with at 31 December 1979; 14,560 of these have since been cleared leaving 5,743 now outstanding.
It is not possible to furnish separate information for south-west Cork but in the disadvantaged area of County Cork as a whole, which comprises parts of south-west Cork and mid-Cork, 1,729 applications remained to be dealt with at 31 December 1979 out of 5,196 received; 1,268 have since been cleared leaving 461 now outstanding.
Most remaining cases require further investigation or additional documentation in relation to such matters as offfarm income, ownership, management, herd registration and so on. In most instances action by or on behalf of the applicants is awaited.