§ MR. J. G. BUTCHER (York)I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland whether, in calculating the contribution hereafter to be made to Poor Law Unions under the Local Government Bill of next Session, the rates raised in the financial year current at the date of the passing of the 1477 Bill will be taken as the basis of calculation?
§ MR. GERALD BALFOURThis is a matter that may require consideration. In the case of the Agricultural Rates Act of 1896, the English Local Government Board were able to take, as the basis of calculation for the purposes of the Act, the rates raised in a year which heel expired before the Bill was introduced, and before there was any knowledge of the intentions of Government in the matter. In the case of Ireland, however, the intentions of Government having been already announced, it is conceivable that a Board of Guardians, by adopting a higher rate than was necessary, might seek to obtain, in perpetuity, a larger grant than the Union would be entitled to upon the basis of its normal poor law expenditure; and such a proceeding may have to be provided against. I may observe that the English Local Government Board, under Article 3 of the Regulations issued by them, reserved to themselves the right of taking into account any special circumstances affecting the amount raised by the Spending Authority, or their predecessors, during the year preceding the passing of the Act, and they availed themselves of this provision in reducing claims when it appeared from the information in their possession that the expenditure had included expenses of an exceptional and non-recurring character.