§ MR. DILLON (Mayo, E.)I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether his attention has boon called to the fact that the action of the Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction in Ireland in subsidising the Irish Agricultural Organisation Society out of the public funds at its disposal is illegal, and was taken in violation of a pledge given by Mr. Gerald Balfour, the Minister in charge of the Bill when it passed through the House of Commons; and what steps the Irish Government propose to take to prevent the continuance of this illegal action on the part of the Department.
MR. BRYCEIt had has been, and is, the view of the Department of Agriculture that the payments out of public funds which have been made to the Irish Agricultural Organisation Society are legal, but the matter is one which I have had no opportunity, since the Question appeared on the Paper, of personally investigating. As respects what was said by Mr. Gerald Balfour, I have no knowledge, beyond what may be gathered from the Reports in the Parliamentary Debates, and the ugh I have had no time to read them myself, I am informed that they do not contain anything bearing on the 840 matter. As respects the question regarded as a matter of policy, the continuance of these payments to the Irish Agricultural Organisation Society will be considered by the Council of Agriculture at their meeting next week, and the decision then arrived at will govern the future action of the Department.
§ MR. DILLONIf the payments are illegal will the Government take steps to restrain them?
MR. BRYCEClearly if they are illeged they ought not to continue. I will obtain advice from the Law Officers of the Crown.
§ MR. DILLONI will repeat the Question this day fortnight.