§ LORD BALCARRES (Lancashire, Chorley)I beg to ask the First Commissioner of Works if he will state the nature of the buildings which it is proposed to erect on the open space to the west of the Law Courts; and whether, considering the aesthetic and hygienic value of this open space, which was laid out at the expense of the late Mr. William Henry Smith, any scheme to erect the proposed building; elsewhere could be favourably considered.
§ THE FIRST COMMISSIONER OF WORKS (Mr. AKERS DOUGLAS,) Kent, St. Augustine'sThe buildings to be erected on the vacant site to the west of the Law Courts are four new courts and their adjuncts, which will form part of the Royal Courts of Justice, and must be in structural communication therewith. The extension will occupy about one-sixth of the area of vacant ground which was temporarily laid out as a garden by the generosity of Mr. Smith, but was acquired and always intended for an extension of the courts when needed. As the essential object in view in the erection of the Royal Courts of Justice was the concentration of the legal business of the country, the Government could not view favourably my noble friend's suggestion to erect additional courts elsewhere.