§ Mr. Fox Maulewished to ask the right hon. Baronet at the head of the Home Department whether it were intended on the part of the Government, to introduce any bill to vary the provisions of the Poor-law Act with respect to Scotch and Irish surgeons attending in prisons and unions? Another question which he had to propose to the right hon. Gentleman was, whether he intended to introduce a bill to provide for the endowment of parishes for quoad sacra ministers? It was understood that her Majesty's Government intended to appropriate certain property or fees in Scotland for the endowment of those ministers.
§ Sir James Grahamsaid, that, with reference to the first question, a draft of a bill had been prepared by the governors of prisons in Scotland, which was now in his possession. He had taken the opinion of the law advisers of the Crown opal the subject, and he hoped in a few days to be able to introduce a bill on the subject. With regard to medical practitioners, members of Scotch universities, not being allowed to be engaged in England under the Poor-law Amendment Act, he had already stated his opinion that it was a grievance both with regard to them and Irish medical practitioners; but that arose from the Apothecaries Act. He was anxious to remove the grievances under which Irish and Scotch practitioners laboured; but he was not disposed to introduce any clause into the Poor-law Amendment Act to remedy it, because, as he stated, it involved of necessity the whole question of medical reform. With regard to the third point, which was the most important, the right hon. Gentleman misunderstood what fell from him on a former occasion. He did not undertake to introduce any measure for the continuance of quoad sacra ministers in Scotland, much less for their endowments. It was not the intention of her Majesty's Government to propose any means of endowment for those ministers.