§ MR. SLOAN (Belfast, S.)I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether Sir Antony MacDonnell holds the position of Undersecretary for Ireland on the lines and under the conditions laid down in the late Chief Secretary's letter when making the appointment; and, if not, will he explain the terms, if any, under which he retains office over and above those of an ordinary Civil servant.
§ MR. GRETTON (Derbyshire, S.)May I at the same time also ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland if the conditions under which the Under-Secretary was appointed by the late Chief Secretary have been in any way changed.
§ MR. WALTER LONGI had hoped that the reply given by me on the 6th inst.† to the Question of my hon. friend the Member for South Belfast sufficiently explained the relations subsisting between myself and the Under-Secretary. I observe, however, that considerable misconception still appears to exist, and I think it necessary, therefore, to make a fuller statement in order to remove, as far as possible, all misunderstandings in the matter. It has been suggested that a special compact exists, the object of which is to avoid the publication of correspondence. There is not the smallest foundation for this suggestion. It is invidious for me to have to criticise my predecessor, and I have hitherto refrained from doing so; but I conceive that the prevalent misunderstandings have their origin very largely in the declaration made by my right hon. friend in this House on February 20th,‡ when he stated that the letters that had passed between him and Sir Antony MacDonnell made it perfectly plain and clear that the latter was invited by my predecessor rather as a colleague than as a mere Under-Secretary to register his will. I must dissociate myself from this conception of the status of the Under-Secretary in so far as it affects our relations. My predecessor reserved to himself, I believe, full power of supervision and control; whether he exercised
† See page 648.See (4) Debates, cxli., 650.1279 this power I cannot say. The relations between Sir Antony MacDonnell and myself must, as I have stated, be the same as those which have existed between me and the permanent head of any Department of the State with which I have had the honour to be associated—namely, that, while he may express his opinions on any administrative act and advise me in any matter of policy, everything must be under my complete control and subject to my approval. If this involves a change, then there certainly will be a change in the administration of my Department.
§ MR. DILLON (Mayo, E.)Will the right hon. Gentleman say whether the conditions under which Sir Antony Mac-Donnell was invited to accept the appointment have, as a matter of fact, been altered?
§ MR. WALTER LONGThat really must be a matter of which the hon. Member is as good a judge as I am. I have stated quite distinctly what are the conditions that exist between the Under-secretary and myself. I have stated also that the observance of those conditions must depend on the administration of the Department. All I have said—and to this I adhere—is that I possess and that I intend to exercise full powers of supervision and control. If that involves a change, then that can only be proved by the system of administration we shall pursue.