§ MR. PICKERSGILL (Bethnal Green, S.W.)To ask the President of the 1599 Local Government Board whether the Board are pressing the guardians of Bethnal Green to erect a casual ward; and, if so, whether, in view of the imminent Report of the Commission on the Poor Laws and of the bet that the Government have not vet decided on the action to be taken consequent upon the Departmental Report on Vagrancy, the Board will allow the matter to stand over for the present, and in the meantime resume payments to the guardians out of the Metropolitan Common Poor Fund in respect of the loan raised for the purchase of the land for the site of the casual ward.
(Answered by Mr. John Burns.) The Board some time since authorised the guardians to provide casual wards, but they are not at the present time pressing them to do so. On the other hand, unless the erection of the wards is proceeded with, it cannot be said that the land is being used for the provision of wards for the purposes of the Metropolitan Houseless Poor Acts, and consequently the payments in respect of the loan for the purchase of land cannot properly be charged upon the Metropolitan Common Poor Fund.