asked the Minister for Social Welfare the number of smallholders who would become ineligible for unemployment assistance in the event of the multiplier being increased to 110 per £1 RV.

: While it is not possible to put an exact figure on the number of smallholders who would become ineligible for unemployment assistance in the event of the multiplier being increased to £110 per £1 rateable valuation it is estimated that the figure would be in or about 7,500. This figure would, of course, be reduced to the extent that applicants ineligible on the notional basis might be eligible on the basis of factual assessment.

: The Minister will accept, I am sure, that that particular option is clearly contained in the Green Paper and may I ask if he views with equanimity the prospect of 7,500 smallholders being deleted from unemployment benefit?

: I do not view anything in the social welfare area, either positive or negative, with equanimity, but I should point out that this process of taking people with small farms off benefits which we in Fianna Fáil introduced, the notional system, was started by the Coalition Government. All the Green Paper does is give the national average for multiplier purposes at £110. It does not in any way state that that is going to be adopted. It just sets out what multiplier the national average would give us. I would like to point out that even if we were to increase the multiplier in the notional system the factual assessment basis still remains, and when the Coalition Government increased the multiplier before, a number of people came back in to benefit because they opted for factual assessment.

: I would accept what the Minister says but nevertheless would the Minister not agree that the net effect of the option outlined in the Green Paper is that 7,500 smallholders on average nationally would be removed from the register for unemployment assistance?

: I would be fairly confident that, even if we were to adopt that multiplier—which I am not saying is going to be adopted; and I would not favour adopting it—I would not think that it would be legitimate to apply a national average to the 12 western counties because completely different circumstances prevail but even if we were to adopt the national multiplier in western country circumstances, there would be a very large number of that 7,500 people, I am convinced, who would come back in on benefit on a factual assessment basis.

: But the Minister would accept that there is no such criterion as western development counties in the option laid out in the Green Paper?

: The notional assessment system only applies in the 12 western counties.

: I appreciate that the Minister may be distancing himself from the implication in the Green Paper relative to the 7,500 people he mentioned but there is no reference whatever——

: The notional assessment system applies in the 12 western counties.

: Deputy O'Donoghue never heard of them.

: Question No. 32.

: Do not provoke him about the Minister, Deputy O'Donoghue.

: The Minister for Economic Planning and Development has demonstrated here time and again at Question Time and other times that he is quite capable of defending himself.

: He does not know the Minister for Social Welfare as we do.