(Cavan-Monaghan): asked the Minister for Agriculture if he is aware of the unreasonable delays in paying headage grants in west Cavan; if he will explain the cause of these delays, and if he will take steps to eliminate same and have the grants paid.

Under the 1978 cattle headage payments scheme there was a total of 72,600 applicants: 68,417 of these have been cleared for payment and 43,417 payments have been issued. There have been no delays in dealing with west Cavan cases under the 1978 cattle headage payments scheme. Some 97 per cent of cases there have been cleared as compared with 93 per cent for the western area as a whole. Most of the outstanding cases are being further investigated or additional documentation is being awaited.

(Cavan-Monaghan): Have some of these been cleared in comparatively recent times?

Ninety-seven per cent of the cases have been cleared in west Cavan as compared with 93 per cent for the entire western region. Some of the applications have been held up in the postal dispute. About 266 applications have been held up in that way. They will be cleared immediately the strike has been called off.

26.

asked the Minister for Agriculture if he would consider extending the headage payments, paid under the sheep subsidy scheme, to cover Suffolk Cross lambs, due to their suitability for the French market.

Suffolk Cross lambs are essentially a lowland type and when properly managed give good returns. They are not normally maintained in the mountain regions and so it is considered that extension of the sheep headage payments scheme to them would not be warranted.