§ MR. E. H. PICKERSGILL (Bethnal Green, S.W.)I beg to ask the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, whether the control of the general reserve fund of Egypt is governed by a Khedivial decree, dated 21st July 1888; whether this decree empowers the Egyptian Government to apply the money belonging to the fund—à des dépenses extra-ordinaires engagées conformément é àl'avis préalable de la Commission de la Delte; whether large sums have been advanced out of the fund without the unanimous consent of the Commissioners; and, if so, what are the dates and circumstances of such precedents?
MR. CURZON(1) The General Reserve Fund was established, and its objects defined by, the Khedive's decree of the 12th of July 1888. (2) Yes. (3) Lord Cromer, in his report, recently laid, stated that, out of the general reserve fund, a sum of about £El,327,000 183 is pledged as advances on account of railways and other works of public utility. (4) We have no information as to the voting upon the decisions which have hitherto been taken by the Commissioners in regard to expenditure from the reserve fund, but it has never hitherto been suggested that a vote of the majority would not be sufficient. In the general financial work of the Commission numerous precedents exist for decisions by the vote of the majority, and this is the recognised and ordinary method of procedure.