Edition Bobbett2. Speeches and statements by Elizabeth F. Bobbett

1945 Dublin, Annual Convention of the Irish Farmers’ Federation

Source: Model Farmer and Stick Breeder, June 1945

Miss Elizabeth Bobbett’s annual report (her eight, so the years do slip by) outlined measures which the Federation recommended to the Department. It was over two years ago, she said, since they put forward a scheme to the Minister to secure the stall-feeding industry, but he would not act on it.

That there was not a greater improvement in the production of bacon was, she felt, due to the uncertainty of the prices. “We have no guarantee that a new set of reduced prices will not be announced at any moment, like the egg prices last year and this year. “Indeed, this lack of security in all lines of agriculture is the greatest hindrance to production. Every other section of manufacturers know what profits they can make, but the farmers’ prices are controlled without his being taken into consultation, and with no regard to his production costs. We warned the Minister for Agriculture in February, 1944, of the threatened shortage of Spring Seed Wheat, but he said ‘they had ample reports that the harvest of Spring Wheat during 1943 would be sufficient,’ while in March he had to compel us to sow Canadian Seed Wheat which proved a failure, and we farmers had to suffer the loss of expense in putting it in and having it a failure.”

Other points from her report: “I regret to say that farmers are still being pressed for debts of arrears of rates and annuities, and Bank debts, the result of the economic war period, but we have been able to get extension of time for many of them, and got some settlements with the Bank for more.” She advocated national control of the credit of the country, and added that there were millions for many industries, but the only really wealth-producing industry, Agriculture, was not among them.