§ MR. WILLIAM MOORE (Antrim, N.)I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, seeing that the rural districts of Ballymoney and Ballycastle have last year adopted the Irish Education Act of 1892, and have respectively appointed school attendance committees to the extent of one-half in each case as provided by Section 3 of the Act, if there is any reason for the delay on the part of the Commissioners of National Education to appoint the remaining half of each of such committees, and inasmuch as the Act cannot be enforced till this has been done, will stops be taken for an early appointment in these cases.
§ MR. G. W. BALFOURAs regards the Ballycastle Rural District the county council have not yet notified to the Commissioners any action taken by them for the appointment of a Committee. As regards the Ballymoney Rural District, the names of five persons appointed by the county council to form half the Committee for the District were received from the secretary to the council on the 7th March last. On the 9th March the secretary was asked for certain particulars regarding the persons appointed, and also to state whether the regulations required by the Act had been framed or adopted by the council. The necessary particulars were received subsequently, but the regulations have not yet been submitted by the county council for the approval of the Commissioners, as required by the Act. The Commissioners have, however, been in communication with their local inspector regarding the selection of suitable persons to form the second half of the Committee, but they must await the receipt of the regulations referred to before their appointments can be notified. It will thus be seen that there has not been any avoidable delay 1106 on the part of the Commissioners in making appointments in these cases.