§ MR. HERBERT LEWIS (Flint Boroughs)I beg to ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, having regard to the fact that Commissioners of Land Tax are only summoned to meetings of the commissioners by notices published in the official Gazette, and seeing that Land Tax Commissioners cannot know the time and place of meeting without putting themselves to the trouble and expense of buying and reading the official Gazette, instructions will be given to the clerks to the Commissioners of Land Tax to summon the commissioners by notice sent by post to each commissioner, in accordance with the usual practice adopted by other public bodies.
§ MR. AUSTEN CHAMBERLAINThe hon. Member is presumably referring to the meetings of Land Tax Commissioners convened from time to time by 1327 the Board of Inland Revenue, under Section 4 of the Act, 5 and 6 Vict., Cap. 35, for the purpose of appointing commissioners for the general purposes of income tax. The convenience of the commissioners is always consulted by the Board before appointing the time and place of meeting; and when the notice is published in the Gazette a notification of the fact, and a copy of the Gazette, are invariably sent to the clerk to the commissioners, with a request that he will take the necessary steps to ensure a sufficient attendance on the occasion. The Board think that the clerk may be safely left to use his own discretion as to what steps are actually necessary to this end.
§ MR. HERBERT LEWISIs the hon. Gentleman aware that, as a matter of fact, no notice is sent to the commissioners?
§ MR. AUSTEN CHAMBERLAINThe number of commissioners is very large, and if notice were sent to each one it would cause great delay. If the hon. Member has any suggestion to communicate to me I shall be happy to receive it.