§ MR. HUGH LAW (Donegal W.)I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether his attention has been called to the condemnation, on page viii. of the Report of the General Prisons Board for Ireland for the year 1905–6, of the continuance by some magistrates of the practice of sending children of from nine to eleven years of age to prison, notwithstanding the provision already made by the Legislature to enable juvenile offenders to be dealt with otherwise; and whether the Government contemplate taking any action in the matter.
MR. BRYCEMy attention has been called to the remarks of the General Prisons Board for Ireland on the subject in question, and I entirely agree with the Board in their expression of regret that the practice of sending young children to gaol for minor offences still prevails in some cases. The hon. Member will see, however, by referring to page vii. of the Report, that such cases are compara- 626 tively few. In the year 1905 nine children under twelve years of age ware committed to prison. Two of these were discharged by the magistrates themselves, and in four other cases sentence was commuted by the Lord-Lieutenant. Some years ago the Irish Government sent a circular to the magistrates in Ireland calling their attention to the provisions of the law under which juvenile offenders can be dealt with otherwise than by imprisonment; and when any case occurs in which magistrates appear to have overlooked these provisions, it is the practice of the Government to direct afresh the attention of such magistrates to those provisions.