§ MR. D. A. THOMASOn behalf of the hon. Member for the Eifion Division of Carnarvonshire, I beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his attention has been called to the statements made by the Stipendiary Magistrate at the Southwark Police Court, at the conclusion of a case tried before him on Monday last, that it was perfectly clear that some of the witnesses had come to the court to commit wilful downright absolute perjury, and that there was no doubt that perjury of this kind went on every day at every police court; and whether Her Majesty's Government will introduce legislation for the more summary punishment of the perjury which is alleged by the magistrate to be prevalent in English police courts.
* SIR M. WHITERIDLEYI have seen a report of the magistrate's remarks. I do not see my way to promote legislation to make convictions for perjury easier, the difficulty now experienced in securing such convictions being the difficulty of obtaining sufficient evidence.