§ MR. MENZIES (Lanarkshire, S.)I beg to ask the Secretary for Scotland whether, in view of the fact that the total number of children in average attendance at secondary schools in Scotland for the year 1904–5 was 16,688 and that they received grants of public money amounting in all to £70,496 11s. 10d., he will explain upon what principle grants to the amount of £80,690 14s. 3d. were given to these same schools for the year 1906–7 when the number of children had only increased by 240, making a total of 16,928; and whether this increased grant of £10,000 is reasonable, as it amounts to £40 per child in increased average attendance.
§ THE SECRETARY FOR SCOTLAND (Mr. SINCLAIR,) ForfarshireThe particulars of grants paid to secondary schools in the year 1906–7, as given on page 41 of the Report on Secondary Education, comprise a number of payments made in respect of two years, as explained in a footnote. The figures given by the hon. Member do not make allowance for this fact and therefore require considerable modification. Apart from this, however, the amounts of these grants were not determined by average attendance. They were derived from three sources, two of which provide fixed sums to be distributed annually as nearly as may be in their entirety for the benefit of secondary schools. The grants for science and art paid by the Department, which formed the third source of income of these schools, were determined by the amount and quality of the work done,