§ MR. SLOAN (Belfast, S.)To ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether he is aware that Mr. Bretland, formerly engineer to the Belfast Town Council, and Mr. Munce, the assistant engineer, condemned certain sites used for building purposes in Belfast as unsanitary and a danger to the health of the people; and, if in view of these facts, he will communicate with the Local Government Board with the view of having further inquiry made into the matter.
(Answered by Mr. Bryce.) The Local Government Board have no knowledge whether the facts are as stated in the first part of the Question. I informed the hon. Member on Friday last † that the general suitability of building sites is a matter for the decision of the corporation. The Local Government Board have no functions except when a site is acquired by the corporation for the housing of the working classes, in which case a local inquiry is held before a loan is sanctioned.