§ MR. PARNELL (Cork)I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland whether he 'will consider the desirability of including in the proposed Bill for the benefit of long leaseholders provisions for the benefit of evicted tenants? In consequence of what occurred last night, I should like to vary the question by asking whether, in view of the adoption of the clause of the hon. Member for South Tyrone (Mr. T. W. Russell) providing for the case of evicted tenants where the landlord is willing to sell, the right hon. Gentleman will have any objection to consider the propriety of introducing a clause dealing with the case of evicted tenants where the landlord is not willing to sell? It will be in the recollection of the right hon. Gentleman that I put down two clauses on the Committee stage of the Land Purchase Bill which I was unable to move, because the Chairman informed me they were out of order. One of those clauses was practically added to the Bill on the Report stage last night on the Motion of the hon. Member for South Tyrone. The remaining clause is one which applies to the case of tenants where the landlord is unwilling to sell, and I beg to call the attention of the right hon. Gentleman to these circumstances.
§ MR. T. W. RUSSELL (Tyrone, S.)May I ask whether the right hon. Gentleman will take into account the great danger of doing anything to hinder the passing of the Leaseholders' Bill?
§ MR. A. J. BALFOURI entirely agree that there is a danger of overloading the Bill, seeing that if any additional elements of controversy are introduced it would be impossible to pass it. With regard to the question put by the hon. Gentleman the Member for Cork, he has accurately stated that the clause adopted last night coincides in all its main particulars with the suggestion he 1726 threw out at an earlier stage. I am afraid it will not be possible for the Government to pledge themselves to go further in the direction in which they have already gone.