§ MR. WINTERBOTHAM (Gloucester, Cirencester)I beg to ask the First Lord of the Treasury whether his attention has been called (as, ex officio, an Ecclesiastical Commissioner) to the On-Licences Return just presented to the House (Blue Book, No. 28); whether it is true, as appears in that Return that the Ecclesiastical Commissioners are owners of a large number of licensed premises, e.g., 24 in Finsbury (p. 42); 10 in Newington (p. 45); 2 in St. Pancras (p. 46); 9 in the Tower (p. 48); 2 in Kensington (p. 50); and 2 in High-gate (p. 50); will he inform the House what is the whole number of licensed houses in the country which they (the Ecclesiastical Commissioners) hold, as registered owners, with the on-licences; and, what is the annual income which they derive from such property?
§ *THE FIRST LORD OF THE TREASURY (Mr. W. H. SMITH,) Strand, WestminsterThe number of licensed houses mentioned in the Return as held under the Ecclesiastical Commissioners as owners would appear to be approximately correct. The Commissioners have for some years past aimed at reducing the number of public houses found existing upon the estates which have from time to time fallen into their possession—e.g., on the Finsbury estate the number discontinued within the past 10 years, or under notice to be discontinued, is 16, exclusive of beerhouses, which the Commissioners invariably suppress as the leases fall in. I am not able to state the whole number of licensed houses in the country of which the Ecclesiastical Commissioners are registered owners, but nearly the whole of the income derived by the Commissioners from public houses arises in and about London, and the rental of such houses is about £10,000 per annum, out of a rental from house property in London and the suburbs of £224,000 per annum.