§ MR. HEALYasked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, 1075 Whether it is the fact that dog licences are payable in Ireland on each 31st March; whether petty sessions' clerks are bound to transmit the amounts in their hands before the 1st May in each year; whether, notwithstanding this, the local authorities entitled to the surplus in relief of taxation do not usually receive it for twelve months afterwards; whether it is the fact that in some years the net surplus for Ireland has amounted to over £17,000; whether the surplus is over invested by the treasurer; what is the cause of the long delay between the despatch of the tax by the petty sessions' clerks and the transmission of the surplus from the treasurer back to the local authorities; whether steps will be taken to have the surplus paid 'on the 31st March last sent to the several counties and cities by the treasurer at once; whether there is a considerable falling off in the Irish Dog Tax in recent years; whether, in the county Cork alone, the falling off amounts to a thousand pounds per annum; whether this is duo to the decrease in the number of dogs, or to the want of vigilance on the part of the Constabulary, owing to eviction duty and patrol work; and, whether, as the surplus obtained through the dog tax goes largely in relief of taxation paid by tenant farmers, an explanation will be asked from the police authorities as to the falling off in the receipts?
§ MR. TREVELYANSir, dog licences in Ireland are payable before the 31st of March in each year, but a considerable number are issued at other times during the year, which is not complete till the 31st of December. The next three Questions I answer in the affirmative. The surplus has always been invested temporarily, and the dividends paid over to the local authorities. The year ends on the 31st of December. The accounts are made out up to that date, and the suggestion contained in the seventh Question cannot be adopted. With regard to the rest of the Questions, I find that there was a decrease in 1880 from the previous year of £3,500, but since then there has been a slight increase. In the County Cork in 1881 there has been an increase over 1880 of £207 18s., representing 2,079 dogs. The decrease in 1879–80 may be attributed partly to the fact that a number of persons had their dogs destroyed in consequence of the bad harvest of 1879. I do not think it necessary 1076 to call on the Constabulary for the explanation suggested in the final Question.