HC Deb 11 April 1910 vol 16 cc884-5
Mr. O'SULLIVAN

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland whether he is aware that the tenants on the Morphy estate, Aglish, East Kerry, had been negotiating for purchase with their landlord under the Act of 1903, and that, after having agreed as to terms, the landlord refused to complete the sale on account of the danger of a reduced bonus; and whether, seeing that this small estate, of which Lord Ventry is head landlord, adjoins the Ventry estate which is being purchased by the Congested Districts Board, as the landlord refuses now to sell under the Act of 1909, and as the holdings are small and the tenants poor, the Board will request the landlord to sell to them, and if he refuses put their compulsory powers into operation?

The CHIEF SECRETARY for IRELAND (Mr. Birrell)

The ease of the Morphy estate will be carefully considered by the Congested Districts Board, but I am not in a position at present to say what action they may take in the matter?

Mr. PATRICK O'BRIEN (for Mr. O'Kelly)

asked whether the right hon. Gentleman was aware that Patrick J. Cullen, the tenant of an hotel in French-park, county Roscommon, considers himself unfairly treated by the Congested Districts Board; whether he is aware that Mr. Cullen had been tenant of this property since 1876, was induced by an agent of the Congested Districts Board to give up possession in order to enable the Board to make some repairs, and now finds himself in the position of caretaker, subject to eviction without compensation, the hotel in question having been sold to a middleman, named M'Dermot; and "whether the Board will compensate Mr. Cullen for disturbance?

Mr. BIRRELL

I understand that the facts of the case are as follows. At the time of purchase of the De Freyne Estate by the Congested Districts Board, Mr. McDermott, of Castlerea, held under a lease a plot, upon which is the hotel in the town of Frenchpark, at a ground rent of £2 0s. 6d. per year. Mr. Cullen was the sub-tenant in occupation. Since the Board purchased the estate the lease expired and the Board took over formal possession of the premises from the occupier, Cullen, who was re-admitted as caretaker. Cullen asked to be made a tenant of the holding with buildings thereon, and have the premises sold to him under the Land Purchase Acts. Mr. McDermott applied that the premises should be sold to him on the ground that, although his lease had expired, and the valuable house property upon the holding which have cost his predecessor several hundred pounds, had legally fallen into the ownership of the landlord, it would be an injustice to take the property from him without compensation, and to sell it to the sub-tenant who never contributed towards the erection or maintenance of the buildings. The Board, after full consideration of the facts of the case, decided to sell to Mr. McDermott for cash the fee-simple of the premises, for the price they had paid to Lord De Freyne for the ground rent, plus an amount expended on repairing the buildings. Cullen who continues in occupation of the premises as tenant, as heretofore, does not appear to have anything to complain of.