§ MR. JOYCE (Limerick)I beg to ask the Secretary to the Board of Education whether he will grant a Return dealing with officials employed by county boroughs in England with populations between 20,000 and 100,000 in carrying out the provisions of the Technical Instruction Act.
§ SIR WILLIAM ANSONThe Technical Instruction Acts were repealed by the Education Act of 1902, and as a consequence were no longer in force on 1st June, 1904, in any county borough, with three exceptions. Hence the Return asked for by the hon. Member cannot be supplied. I do not consider that the Board would be justified in granting any Return on the lines of the Return asked for. Technical instruction in county boroughs is now being provided as part of schemes for the general provision of education other than elementary, and 1211 consequently the arrangements are at present in a very transitional stage. The salaries of teachers in this kind of instruction depend largely upon the very varying lengths of time for which they are employed; any general statement under this head would therefore be of little value. On the other hand, the making of such a Return would involve county borough councils and this Board in a large amount of labour and expense to which the value of the Return would be wholly incommensurate.