§ MR. ERNEST GRAYI beg to ask the First Lord of the Treasury whether, having regard to the desirability of finding some solution of the religious difficulty associated with education in public elementary schools, he will refer this question to a Select Committee of this House, or to a small Commission of Inquiry, in order that an accurate statement of fact may be placed before the country, and, if possible, some general agreement secured which might form the basis, if necessary, of subsequent legislation.
§ THE PRIME MINISTER AND FIRST LORD OF THE TREASURY (Mr. A. J. BALFOUR,) Manchester, E.As my hon. friend is aware, I have long held the opinion, which I have publicly expressed, that the present disputes about religious matters in connection with the Education Act are neither good for education nor good for religion; but I am not sure that the machinery which my hon. friend proposes would really do anything material to solve the problem, the difficulty of which everybody who has looked into the subject is fully aware of.