§ MR. WHITEHEAD (Essex, S. E.)I beg to ask the President of the Local Government Board whether, in view of his decision to sanction the payments made by local authorities for religious instruction in non-provided schools pending the appeal in the West Riding case, steps can also be taken to secure equal consideration for passive resisters, who are entitled to the benefit of the decision in the Court of Appeal; and whether he can restrain local authorities during the same period from harshly enforcing against passive resisters the payment of rates for such religious instruction whether by distress or by applying for committal orders.
§ THE PRESIDENT OF THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT BOARD (Mr. JOHN BURNS, Battersea)The only jurisdiction I have in respect of religious instruction in non-provided schools is in connection with the audit of expenditure incurred in relation to it, and, as regards this part of the matter, I may refer to the reply I gave on Monday last to the Question put to me by the hon. Member for the Universities of Glasgow and Aberdeen. † I am not empowered to take
† See (4) Debates, clxiii., 700.128 any action of the kind referred to by my hon. friend.