THE MARQUESS OF HARTINGTON (Lancashire, Rossendale)I beg to ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in view of the fact that many of the County Councils of England are setting apart sums of money under "The Local Taxation Act, 1890," for important educational purposes, and that the Joint Committees of Wales are embodying the grants under this Act in their schemes for intermediate education, he can give an assurance that these grants are not about to be applied to some other purpose, but will continue to be available for intermediate, technical, and agricultural education?
§ MR. GOSCHENI do not consider that I am in a position to give any formal or official assurance, but I may say that there are no suggestions before me for applying these grants to some other purpose, and I may add, as my personal opinion, that if County Councils set themselves heartily to work, as in 529 many places they appear to be doing, to utilise the grants for important educational purposes, it would probably be difficult for any Minister to persuade Parliament to divert them, even if he himself desired to do so.