§ MR. T. R. BUCHANAN (Aberdeenshire, E.)I beg to ask the President of the Local Government Board whether the Rating Commission has begun its sittings: and, what progress has been made in its work?
§ MR. CHAPLINI am informed that the Commission met in the autumn, and decided upon the character of the information it was desirable to secure from certain public departments and public bodies. They appointed a Committee to arrange the precise form in which the information should be obtained, and to communicate with the public departments and public bodies concerned. The information required being largely composed of statistics, has taken the various Government departments a considerable time to prepare, but it is nearly complete; and regular sittings to hear witnesses have been arranged, and will commence at an early date.