§ MR. KNOX () Cavan, W.On behalf of the hon. Member for East Cavan, I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland whether, in view of the decrease in the national teachers' capitation grant from 4s. 8d. to 3s. 8d. per head, the Government intend to take any steps to increase the fund in the manner contemplated by the Education Act; whether the widows and orphans of deceased teachers receive anything from the pension fund; and, if so, under what conditions; whether, in a recent case in County Cavan, the widow and orphans of a teacher who died after 34 years' service received no allowance; and whether the Government will publish an Actuarial Report showing the state of the pension fund at the present time, and announce any changes they propose to make in its regulation?
MR. J. MORLEYThe Education Act of 1892 provides, in abolition or relief of school fees, a sum of £210,000 a year for the teachers over and above all the other Parliamentary grants. The distribution of this sum takes place under the following heads:—(a) A capitation allowance to schools paid by capitation; (b) an increase of 20 per cent, on salaries where teachers are paid by salaries and not by capitation; (c) a special bonus to assistant teachers; (d) a special allowance to teachers of small schools; and, (e) after payment of all these sums, the residue of the £210,000 is divided in an all-round capitation grant on the average school attendance. This residue must of course be a varying sum from year to year, and the more that must be paid under the first four specified heads the less necessarily will be the residue; and, again, as the average attendance increases, the less will be the quotient of the available residue into which the attendance is divided. Hut every penny of the £210,000 goes to the teachers. While the school fees to teachers in 1893 were about £88,000 less than for the year 1891—the year preceding the passing of the Act—the grant of £210,000 was a net gain of £122,000, or an average of about £10 per teacher. There is no provision for pensions or allowances for the widows and orphans 760 of deceased teachers, excepting the provision that if a teacher die in the service the premiums paid by him towards his pension shall be paid to his legal representative, with interest at 3 per cent, per annum. The statement in the third paragraph is correct. The matter referred to in the concluding paragraph is one for the Treasury.
§ MR. KNOXIs the right hon. Gentleman aware that the clause in the Education Act referred to in the answer does not fix an absolute sum of £210,000 a year, but contemplates an increase in the grant in proportion to the increase of the English grant, and that it was 9 per cent, of the total sum granted to the United Kingdom; and is he aware that the English grant has increased very much more than was contemplated at the time?
§ MR. T. W. RUSSELL () Tyrone, S.Has the right hon. Gentleman any information as to the effect of this Act on schools where fees were high?
MR. J. MORLEYI do not know how far the statements of my hon. and learned Friend are authentic. No doubt we can discuss the matter on the Education Estimates. I will inquire as to the question put by the hon. Member for South Tyrone.