§ MR. T. M. HEALY (Longford, N.)asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, Whether, with regard to his statement on the 9th September, 1886, on the Vote for the Home Office, that he should always be disposed to exercise his powers in favour of appointing efficient and competent working men as Inspectors of Factories; whether he had acted in accordance with that statement in the case of the two recent appointments made by him; whether, in the future, as vacancies arise, he would be disposed to consider the claims of competent working men to those appointments; and, whether provision has been made in this year's Estimates for an increase in the staff of Sub-Inspectors of Factories?
§ THE SECRETARY OF STATE (Mr. MATTHEWS) (Birmingham, E.)I have acted in accordance with the statement referred to, and the two appointments recently made by me were of competent working men with a practical experience of factory work and life. I have stated, more than once in this House, that it is not my intention to increase the existing staff of Sub-Inspectors of Factories.