§ MR. C. J. O'DONNELL (Newington, Walworth)I beg to ask the President of the Local Government Board whether he will consider the advisability of altering the regulation at present in force in regard to certifying the school attendance of children of parents who are in receipt of Poor Law relief, so as to avoid the stigma of pauperism which now attaches to such children by the necessity of their obtaining a teacher's signature to an attendance card issued by the guardians as a condition of the continuance of relief to their parents.
§ MR. JOHN BURNSThe practice referred to is not prescribed by any regulations of the Local Government Board, but has been adopted in order to facilitate the carrying out of Section 40 of the Elementary Education Act, 1876, which requires that the provision of education to a child shall be a condition of the continuance of outdoor relief to the parent. I have, however, already drawn the attention of my right hon. friend the President of the Board of Education to the matter, and I hope that this section will be repealed and not re-enacted by the Education (Consolidation) Bill now before the House. The arrangement mentioned in the question would then cease.