§ MR. KNOXI beg to ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his attention has been called to the fact that the teachers in convent schools, who were deprived of a portion of their residual grant out of the Irish Fee, Grant 458 in the same way as other teachers, during the financial years ending March 1893, 1894, and 1895, will receive no benefit from the grant to the Pension Fund; and, whether, having regard to the fact that there is no difficulty in now apportioning the sum which they ought to have then received, he will propose to Parliament any scheme to repay to them that sum?
§ THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUERI am aware that there are differences in many respects between the position of the regular national teachers in Ireland, and that of the teachers in convent schools. But the hon. Member's Question is based on the assumption that the teachers have a right to be paid more than the grant which has been already paid by Parliament for the years in question, and as I cannot admit that assumption, I am not prepared to make the proposal suggested.
§ MR. KNOXI beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, what was the amount of the residual capitation grant under the Irish Fee Grant payable in the years ending March 1893, 1891, and 1895 respectively to convent schools and to teachers who have claims on the pension fund; and, whether there would be any difficulty in making up the deficit in the payment to convent schools by a distribution among those schools during the current year?
§ * MR. GERALD BALFOURI have called for a report on this Question, but not having yet received it, must ask the hon. and learned Member to repeat the Question to-morrow.
§ MR. KNOXI beg to ask the Secretary to the Treasury whether the Irish and Scotch Supplementary Fee Grants will be available for distribution among those teachers in Ireland or school managers in Scotland who would have received the money if it had been voted during the last financial year?
§ * MR. HANBURYThe intention of the Treasury is shown in the footnotes to the Supplementary Estimates now before the House. These Estimates are for the additional sums required in order to increase the amount of the grants included in the Scotch and Irish Education Estimates for 1895–6 by 11–80ths and 9–80ths respectively of the Supplementary Vote for English Education in 459 1805–6. I understand, therefore, that the money will be available for distribution, but the actual distribution is a matter for the Scotch and Irish Offices, not the Treasury.