Michael McCarthy (Labour)

Colleagues in the Minister's own party and others do not see fit to have female spokespersons for agriculture. I am sure the Minister will be relieved to know that not only am I the Labour Party's spokesperson on social affairs, but I am also its spokesperson on agriculture. The Minister and I have had genuine exchanges and in my previous encounters with her I have found her to be both reasonable and open-minded. I am sure she will carry those qualities through to her new portfolio.

As far as I can recall, it is the second occasion in two years that an agricultural Bill has come before the House; the other one dealt with Bord Bia. I wish to pay tribute to the previous Minister, Deputy Joe Walsh, with whom I share a constituency. He occupied that Department and held four ministerial seals of office over a period of 27 years as a Member of the Lower House. He served for 15 years as a Minister, which is quite an achievement. I wish him well in his retirement.

My party supports the Bill in principle, although there are some minor areas where we might have differences of opinion. I will be tabling amendments to reflect those differences on Committee and Report Stages. This Bill constitutes reforming legislation and its clear purpose is to modernise the archaic legislation that still exists. It all goes back to the Land Commission which was established in 1881 as a rent fixing body. We have come a long way since then. It would be practical and worthwhile if the resources of the Department are used to tie up the loose ends in this area. I am sure it would free up staff in the Department and lead to better productivity.

Simplification of the transfer of ownership will be a significant benefit, particularly to organisations such as the GAA. The Minister referred to 500 such trusts. I thought there were more. Nevertheless, there is no reason not to believe the figure we have been given. This is good because of the role the GAA plays in society. It is also good in terms of the proper and full development of trust property by sporting organisations. Such organisations do not own the land so they have no enticement to do anything with it. The Bill will pave the way for this type of development and investment in such tracts of land.

We cannot overlook the fact that when passed the Bill will result in the Exchequer being €18 million better off, which is significant. It is not every day that Departments can have areas cleared up and legislation modernised while ending up with a saving of €18 million. While it is not a lot of money in departmental terms, it is significant.

The historical write-offs are significant in providing a statutory basis for Government decisions made in 1989 and 1992. The nominal fee of €25.40 appears to be just that. However, given that 4,500 farmers will benefit, it will be a worthwhile figure, not least for the people involved. I accept it will lead to greater simplification in conveyancing. There are enough difficulties involved in such areas without the Department contributing to it. As Minister for Social and Family Affairs, Deputy Coughlan introduced simplification in the everyday language of Departments. This is a practical example of how to ease the difficulties and simplify the procedures involved in conveyancing. We must not lose sight of the fact that there is a clear commitment in this regard in the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness. It is one of the commitments being followed through by the Department.

I want to reiterate that my party supports the Bill in principle, even though there are potential flaws in some areas. Most of our amendments are of a technical nature. I am sure we can look forward to a good debate on Committee and Remaining Stages. Again I wish the Minister well in her new appointment.