§ MR. SUMMERS (Huddersfield)I beg to ask the President of the Board of Trade whether it is a fact that the Penal Clause of the Boiler Explosions Act, 1882, which provides that—
The Court may order the costs and expenses of a preliminary inquiry, or formal investigation, or any part thereof, including the remuneration of persons holding such inquiry or investigation, to be paid by any person summoned before it,has never on any occasion been put in force, although no less than 336 preliminary inquiries and one formal investigation have already been held; whether any cases have been found where blame could be attached, and where the Penal Clause would have been applicable; if so, how many such cases were there, and what were the reasons which prevented the Act from being enforced in each case; and, if the Act does not give the necessary powers, whether it is the intention of the Board of Trade to tike steps to amend the Act so as to give the necessary powers?
§ * SIR M. HICKS BEACHYes, Sir; the facts are as stated in the first paragraph of the hon. Gentleman's question. Of all the cases referred to, the Penal Clause was only applicable in one— namely, that in which a formal investigation had been held; and in that case costs and expenses were not applied for as the circumstances did not warrant it. In many of the cases the result of the inquiry was to show that blame could have been attached, but no formal investigation was held, because it was considered that the main object had been attained by discovering the cause of the accident. It does not appear to me that any further powers are necessary. I am, however, carefully considering whether, in the public interests, the Act could not be more stringently enforced in future.