§ MR. DILLON (Mayo, E.)To ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether he will give an itemised account of the expenditure of the £19,000 paid by the Agricultural Department to the Irish Agricultural Organisation Society up to February 28th last, showing the salary of each individual employed in connection with this grant, expenses of each individual so employed, and to 258 what extent such salaries and expenses were paid out of grant of £19,000; a detailed account of all other purposes to which this £19,000 was devoted; and whether properly audited and vouched accounts of fill moneys paid by the Department to the Irish Agricultural Organisation Society are submitted to the Board.
(Answered by Mr. Bryce.) The Department of Agriculture are prepared to give an itemised account showing the salary and expenses paid in respect of each official of the Irish Agricultural Organisation Society employed by the Department for each quarter in the period from April 1st, 1900, to February 28th, 1905, and also the amount paid for any other expenses. This Return will, however, take some time to prepare, as it will embrace a large number of items extending over nearly five years. The grant-in-aid of £2,000 for the year from 1st of March, 1905, to 28th February, 1906, was paid to the society in monthly instalments on the certificate of the representative of the Department who investigated the work done, as indicated in the weekly reports of the several organisers employed by the society, and who carefully examined the claims for remuneration and travelling and incidental expenses before giving his certificate. A similar plan has been adopted with regard to the expenditure of the £3,700 estimated for the twelve months ending 28th February, 1907. The accounts of the Department are sent monthly to the Comptroller and Auditor-General in pursuance of Section 25 of The Agricultural and Technical Instruction (Ireland) Act, 1899, together with all vouchers, to be audited in accordance with the Treasury regulations. The account of the Department's Endowment Fund is published annually in the Appropriation Account, and is certified by the Comptroller and Auditor-General. Statements of all expenditure out of the funds placed at the disposal of the Department, the application of which is subject to the concurrence of the Agricultural Board, are laid periodically before the Board.