§ MR. McCARTANI beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (1) whether he will state under what Statute the medical superintendent of a public asylum in Ireland is enabled to discharge patients who are chronic but not dangerous; (2) whether the 77 chronic cases now in Belfast Workhouse, as transferred from the Asylum, are such cases as the ninth Section of 38 & 39 Vic., c. 67, provides for; (3) whether, seeing that 47 of those transferred to the Belfast Workhouse belong to the Belfast Union, he will state whether they are legally detained there; and (4) whether he will have an inquiry made into the whole matter, in the interests of the inmates, the Governors, and the Guardians?
§ MR. GERALD BALFOURThe power referred to in the first paragraph is conferred on the Resident Medical Superintendent by Clause 26 of the Privy Council Rules dated 17 December 1894, for the management of District Asylums. Under the 11th section of the 30 & 31 Vic., cap. 118, he has power also to discharge lunatics committed as dangerous when they have ceased to be dangerous, and such patients may, if destitute, be sent to a workhouse under the 11th section of the 38 & 39 Vic., cap. 67. The application of the 9th section of the latter Act does not arise in regard to the particular cases referred to, because no agreement between the Guardians and the Governors has been entered into. On discharge from an asylum to a workhouse under Section 11 of the Act of 1875, patients cease to be legally detained as lunatics and are treated as destitute persons in receipt of indoor relief. The operation of Section 9 of the Act of 1875 was reported upon unfavourably by the last Committee on Irish Lunacy Administration and a recommendation was made by the Committee that in any new Lunacy legislation its provisions should be repealed. The Report of this Committee was presented to Parliament in 1891. Under 1561 the circumstances, I see no sufficient reason for an inquiry as suggested in the fourth paragraph.