§ MR. GILHOOLY (Cork County, W.)I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the 329 Lord Lieutenant of Ireland whether he is aware that the Committee of Technical Instruction for the County of Cork have prepared a scheme of technical instruction for the said county; and, seeing that this scheme was discussed with and approved by the officials of the Department of Technical Instruction in Dublin, whether he can explain the delay in giving effect to it.
The following Questions on the same subject also appeared on the Paper—
§ MR. FLYNN (Cork County, N.)To ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland whether his attention has been called to the correspondence between the Cork County Council and the Department of Agriculture, and to the proceedings at the last meeting of the County Council; is he aware that the County Council protested against the action of the Department in retarding the adoption of the scheme of technical instruction, which was prepared with care and deliberation; and whether he can state what reasons, if any, are put forward by the Department to account for the delay in putting the Technical Instruction Act into force in Cork County.
§ CAPTAIN DONELAN (Cork County, E.)To ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland whether he is aware that the action of the Department of Agriculture in connection with the proposed scheme of technical instruction for the County of Cork has been condemned by the Cork County Council; and what steps it is proposed to take in the matter.
§ MR. WYNDHAMThere has been no needless delay by the Department in reference to the very important question presented by the Technical Instruction Scheme for Cork County, which, in point of finance, is the third largest scheme in Ireland and which, in point of the complexity and extent of the educational area it deals with, is the most difficult. The scheme, even if finally approved when received from the County Council on the 24th December last, a date at which the current school session was half over, could not come 330 into effective operation until the next session beginning the 1st August of this year. The Department reserves its approval for the time being, and the Technical Instruction Committee have been informed accordingly.
§ CAPTAIN DONELANIs the right hon. Gentleman aware that the Department have treated the Cork County Council with very scant courtesy in this matter?
§ MR. WYNDHAMI am not aware of that. I know that the right hon. Gentleman the Vice President of the Board is giving his earnest attention to the matter, and is in possession of details and correspondence which I will ask him to show me.
§ CAPTAIN DONELANWill the right hon. Gentleman let me have a copy?
§ [No answer was returned.]