Edition Bobbett2. Speeches and statements by Elizabeth F. Bobbett

1950 Aughrim, Annual Meeting of the Wicklow Farmers’ Party

Source: Wicklow People, 21.01.1950

Miss Elizabeth F. Bobbett said it was ridiculous to saddle the ratepayers with the expense of fire fighting services, which in cases of real emergency, often proved futile, as a convenient and abundant water supply in rural areas was seldom to be found on the scene of a fire. Most people paid fire insurance nowadays, and it was up to the insurance companies to foot the bill where damage was caused. If people were given some relief from the burden of rates, they could sink a pump in their own yard.

She was delighted to hear the Chairman speak in such an optimistic manner. Miss Bobbett said, not only Wicklow but many other counties were on the verge of an uprise. During the past 12 or 13 years, numerous organisations had sprung up and they were doing good work. They had their difficulties but they kept going and now their work was bearing fruit. The work of their own organisation and that of their representative in Dail Eireann was bearing very good fruit, and it was up to them to keep the organisation going. She appealed to the members to make it known that the Farmers’ Party existed.

Referring to the land rehabilitation project, Miss Bobbett said that farmers would like a guaranteed price for their produce before they undertook rehabilitation. In the event of a surplus, prices would drop, as happened in the case of eggs last year, and land was not rehabilitated for nothing. When they were promised [[…]] shillings per cwt for bacon on the British market they were not told that that price was going to change when Denmark’s price changed. Their cost of production and standard of living were probably different to ours. She might sound antagonistic, but she sometimes wondered why the farmers were exhorted to increase their output; certainly not to give a good living, but obviously to provide townspeople with luxuries and up-to-date amenities. In regard to experiments and costings investigations, Miss Bobbett said it was a shame that the Department of Agriculture would not select an average farm for their experiments, and run it on ordinary, commercial lines, and then produce their balance sheet.