§ MR. W. MOORE (Antrim, N.)I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland if his attention has been called to the recent rule of the Irish Land Commission under which an applicant to fix a fair rent in that Court is obliged to procure a certificate of valuation of the holding for the hearing before the Court and file same, which has become necessary by reason of the Local Government (Ireland) Act, in order to enable the Court to decide upon the incidence of taxation, thus imposing an additional cost to the suitor of 2s. 6d. in each case; whether he will make representations to the Land Commission to the effect that, as a public Department, they should themselves procure this information in each case free of expense to the parties by a form of requisition addressed to the other public Department, the Commissioners of Valuation in Ireland; and what fund now receives the 2s. 6d. so paid for such valuation?
§ MR. MACNEILL (Donegal, S.)I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland whether his attention has been directed to the fact that the Irish Land Commission has issued a new rule by which every applicant for the fixing of a fair rent is obliged to file a certificate of valuation, which must be obtained at the Valuation Office in Dublin at a cost of 2s. 6d.; whether he is aware that certificates of valuation were formerly obtained from the clerks of the various unions, now the clerks of boards of guardians, at a cost of 1s.; and whether, having regard to the fact that this new practice entails an increased expenditure on tenants of holdings who apply to have fair rents fixed, and will form the basis of a claim for 970 loss of fees by clerks of unions under the provisions of the Local Government Act, steps will be taken to secure a return to the original practice with reference to the issue of certificates of valuation?
§ MR. GERALD BALFOURThe matter is still under consideration, and I would ask the honourable and learned Members to again postpone the Questions until next Monday.