Willie Penrose (Longford-Westmeath, Labour)
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Question 128: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if his attention has been drawn to the fact that agricultural land values in Leinster and Connaught have fallen by more than 50 percent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3876/10]

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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A recent report by Independent global property consultants Knight Frank Ireland shows that farmland prices declined significantly countrywide, but the most significant decline was in the Dublin/Kildare/Wicklow region, where average prices dropped by 56.6%. The average price paid per acre in this premier region in 2009 was €10,920 down from the previous year's €25,210. The substantial decline was largely attributed to the fact that there were no recorded land sales in County Dublin in 2009. For the rest of the country prices were down an average of 43.3% from €17,081 in 2008 to €9,678 in 2009. Similarly, the results of a survey carried on behalf of the Irish Auctioneers and Valuers Institute (IAVI) show that land values in Leinster and Connaught fell by 30%-45% last year, depending on size and the presence of entitlements, while Munster land values dropped by 20.5%-28%.

The decline in farmland prices over the last few years mirrors the general decline across property markets, a narrowing of the premium paid for land in the Leinster area, the removal of many non-farmer buyers/speculators from the market, as well as a difficulty in sourcing credit/finance.