Will the Minister not agree that we are not taking more than 50 per cent of the funds available under the western package? Will he tell us of his plans to ensure that in the next few years we will take up a larger grant than the £30 million which is the current figure?

As the Deputy is aware, this scheme ran into considerable trouble from its introduction because of a staff problem. This problem arose in the first year of the scheme and it is only since the spring of this year that we have been able to get parts of the scheme off the ground. This relates to grants for the orientation of production, the 40 per cent grants for buildings, which is available to farmers in the north-west. Parts of the scheme were very good. The subsidy for electricity and funding for group water schemes were very desirable but the calf to beef scheme did not take off and is unlikely to do so now.

Why?

For a very simple reason, namely, that it is not the type of breeding or rearing programme used by western farmers. They tend to go from the calf to the store and unfortunately for most of us they sell the store to other areas. If we were able to get people to buy calves and to rear them to slaughter we might be able to solve some of the problems referred to by Deputy Leonard but as of now that scheme has not been as satisfactory as it might have been. The land improvement part of the scheme has begun to work well in the past few months. The matter of roadways to farms has caused particular problems, as Deputy Wilson is aware. We have made several changes——

The Minister appears to be making a speech.

I have been asked in the past few weeks to explain the matter. In my view the restriction on entry for applicants at 55 years was prohibitive. I have changed that condition to enable the scheme to come into the same category as the farm modernisation scheme in order to allow more farmers to enter the scheme. I am also considering other areas as well.