Mr. John Bryan:

While it is not a fair comparison, a farm in Leitrim could be sold tomorrow for €750,000, but one could not buy a civil servant's pension for that amount. How can means be assessed? Income is the fairest way. I had the capacity to borrow to educate my children so I did not get it. However, it is unreasonable to expect a farmer with no borrowing capacity to sell a field which would reduce his income further and potentially push him to farm assist or, worse still, onto the dole. Cash is a different thing. That is why three-year or five-year averaging is preferable. There is no way to manipulate it, given how it is treated in farming - I do not know about it in other sectors. I believe three-year or five-year averaging would probably be fairer for everybody.