§ MR. SOARES (Devonshire, Barnstaple)To ask the Secretary to he Board of Education whether he is 1076 aware that inconvenience to local education authorities has been caused by the delay in paying the balance of annual and fee grants to those authorities whose school year ended October 31st last, such grants in some instances not having been paid until January last, and in some not yet paid; and, if so, whether any assurance can be given that the grants for the present year shall be paid at regular intervals.
§ (Answered by Sir William Anson.) The Board regret that there should have been a delay in some cases in the payment of the annual grant and final instalment of fee grant, due for the school year ending October 31st last, and they are making special efforts at the present time to pay off all such cases with as little delay as possible. The delay, in so far as the Board are responsible for it, is largely due to special pressure some months ago in another department of the Board's work, of which the effect is only now being felt. The Board have every reason to hope that the delay will not again occur.