§ MR. CALDWELL (Lanarkshire, Mid)I beg to ask the Lord Advocate whether he can state the amounts received in each of the financial years ending on 31st March, 1900 and 1901 in respect of fee grant in State-aided schools in Scotland under the provisions of Sub-section (1) of Section 1 of the Education and Local Taxation Account (Scotland) Act, 1892, of Sub-section (6) of Section 2 of the same Act, and of Section 2 of the Local Taxation (Customs and Excise) Act, 1890.
MR. A. GRAHAM MURRAYThe amount received in the financial year ended 31st March, 1900, under Section 1, Sub-section (1), of the Education and Local Taxation Account (Scotland) Act, 1892, was £323,633, and under Section 2, Sub-section (6), of the same Act, £5,379 12s. 2d. Under Section 2 of the Local Taxation (Customs and Excise) Act, 1890, nothing was paid until the expiry of that financial year, as it was for the advantage of the Scottish schools that the £40,000 under that section should not diminish the draft on the parliamentary grant. In the year ended 31st March, 1901, the amount received, under Section 1 Sub-section (1), of the Education and Local Taxation Account (Scotland) Act, 1892, was £314,933; 261 under Section 2, Sub-section (6), of the same Act, £64,036 15s. 5d.; and under Section 2 of the Local Taxation (Customs and Excise, Act, 1890, £40,000.
§ MR. CALDWELLI beg to ask the Lord Advocate if he can state the amount paid into the Local Taxation (Scotland) Account in each of the years ending 31st March, 1900 and 1901 respectively in respect of each of Local Taxation Licences and Estate Duty; also the average attendance in State-aided schools in Scotland on which fee grant at the rate of 10s. per child was paid in each of the said two years; and what balance, if any, was standing at the credit of the fee grant fund on 31st March, 1901, after allowing for the settlement of all claims then due on the fund.
MR. A. GRAHAM MURRAYThe amounts paid into the Local Taxation (Scotland) Account in the year ending 31st March, 1900 were in respect of Local Taxation Licences £361,212 15s. 2d., and in respect of Estate Duty £514,939 4s. 9d., of which £182,960 7s. 9d. was paid under the Agricultural Rates (Scotland) Act, 1896. The amounts paid in in the year ending 31st March, 1901 were in respect of Local Taxation Licences £364,665 18s. 6d., and in respect of Estate Duty £481,003 2s. 8d., of which £182,499 5s. 9d. was paid under the Agricultural Rates, Etc., (Scotland) Act 1896. The Parliamentary fee grant for 1899–1900 was calculated on an average attendance of 631,515 at 10s.; for 1900–1901 on an average attendance of 629,867 at 10s.; and in each case was completely spent. In the former year, fee grant, including that from the Local Taxation Account, was paid at 12s. on an average attendance of 626,284; and for the year ended 31st March, 1901, the payments for which are not yet completed, it is estimated that the 12s. payment will be made on an average attendance of about 631,000. The amount standing to the credit of the Fee Grant Account on 31st March, 1901, after deducting the amount since paid out of the fund, is £59,799 5s. 5d.