§ Mr. HACKETTasked the Chief Secretary for Ireland if he can state the number of tillage exemption orders granted to landholders in the county of Tipperary; the number of rural district councils and urban councils that have formulated tillage schemes; and the number that have found it impossible to formulate any scheme owing to their inability to acquire land for this purpose?
§ Mr. BRACEI am not able at present to give the information asked for in the first part of the question. Allotment schemes have been formulated in five urban districts in county Tipperary. In the other urban district in the county land was offered free of rent, but as it was only available for one year, and as there were no applications for allotments on it, the allotments committee decided to abandon the scheme for this season. No tillage scheme appears to have been made by any of the rural district councils in the county,1306W though the matter has been considered by several of them. In Nenagh rural district land was offered, but in the council's opinion the price was too high, and in Roscrea No. 1 rural district the tracts of land offered were too large in area having regard to the limited number of labourers requiring land.
§ Mr. FLAVINasked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he is aware that the Listowel Rural District Council have prepared a scheme which they have sent to the Local Government Board asking for its sanction to provide conacre allotments for ten families on the extensive farm owned by Mrs. M'Donnell, Barradorig, Killehenny electoral division, Listowel union; and whether he will request the Local Government Board to accede to the request of the Listoiwel Rural District Council in order to secure increased food production?
§ Mr. BRACEThe Listowel Rural District Council passed a resolution at their last meeting requesting Mrs. M'Donnell to let portion of the land referred to in conacre for tillage purposes to ten cultivators. They also requested the Department of Agriculture to give them power to make a letting scheme to these people. No formal scheme or other information has been received by the Local Government Board.
§ Mr. FLAVINasked whether the Local Government Board has yet sanctioned the scheme of the Listowel Rural District Council for the tillage of the derelict land at Doon, near Ballybunion, on the conacre system so as to provide food for the poor of the district; and why the Local Government Board have so long delayed their sanction to the necessary scheme?
§ Mr. BRACENo scheme from Listowel Rural District Council has been submitted to the Local Government Board for approval, but it appears from the council's minutes that they have asked the Department of Agriculture to authorise them to take possession of the land.