§ *SIR CHARLES W. DILKE (Gloucestershire, Forest of Dean)I beg to ask the 337 Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the inquiry into the fish-curing industry, promised in the debate on the Home Office Vote last year, was held; and, if so, when the Report may be expected; and whether any statement with regard to it can be made before the debate on the Home Office Vote.
§ MR. GLADSTONEThe promised inquiry has been made by the Chief Inspector, who has investigated on the spot the conditions existing in the different branches of this widely spread industry, and his Report has been embodied by him in his General Report for 1907 just issued. The subject is a very difficult one, and will require careful consideration, and I am not in a position to make any statement with regard to it at present.