§ SIR JAMES RANKINI beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether, having in view the trivial nature of some of the charges under the head of indictable offences brought before Courts of petty sessions, but which cannot be tried by such Courts without the consent of the defendant, he will consider the desirability of so amending the law that some limited power be placed in the discretion of the Court of petty sessions as to the cases which should be dealt with summarily by the Court without the consent of the defendant.
§ *THE UNDER SECRETARY OF STATE FOR THE HOME DEPARTMENT (Mr. JESSE COLLINGS,) Birmingham, BordesleyThe Secretary of State does not see his way to introduce any such legislation, which would necessarily be of a controversial nature, and would involve questions of considerable difficulty.