§ SIR W. J. COLLINS (St. Pancras, W.)To ask the Secretary to the Treasury what is the total amount that has been expended on capital and on maintenance, respectively, out of pubic funds for the establishment and upkeep of the Imperial Institute; and what are the public services now rendered by the Institute, apart from its use as a museum and exhibition, to the self-governing Colonies, India, and the Crown Colonies.
(Answered by Mr. Hobhouse). The figures asked for, so far as regards the upkeep and maintenance of the Imperial Institute buildings, are given below. In addition a grant of £500 has been made from the Board of Trade Vote to the Institute for cotton-growing investigations, but this grant was only sanctioned for a term of four years and comes to an end in March next. A contribution is also made from the Vote for Colonial Services, up to a maximum of £1,500 in respect of any one year, equal in amount to one-half of any sum which might be contributed by such Colonies and Protectorates as are not in receipt of a grant in aid from Votes of Parliament. In respect of this contribution, which is paid to a fund for the maintenance of the scientific and technical department of 1669 the institute, £1,400 was voted in 1906–7, and the maximum of £1,500 in each of the two succeeding years. As regards the last part of the Question, I understand
| Imperial Institute Buildings. | ||||||||
| Expenditure defrayed by the Commissioners of His Majesty's Works, etc. | ||||||||
| Year. | Proportion incurred for London University. | Proportion incurred for Imperial Institute. | ||||||
| Capital. | Maintenance. | Total. | Capital. | Maintenance. | Total. | |||
| £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | |||
| 1899–1900 | - | 2,611* | 1,040 | 3,651 | 1,740* | 694 | 2,434 | |
| 1900–1 | - | - | 11,243 | 1,187 | 12,430 | 7,495 | 791 | 8,286 |
| 1901–2 | - | - | 177 | 796 | 973 | 118 | 531 | 649 |
| 1902–3 | - | - | 1,688 | 2,390 | 4,078 | 1,125 | 1,594 | 2,719 |
| 1903–4 | - | - | 889 | 2,279 | 3,168 | 593 | 1,519 | 2,112 |
| 1904–5 | - | - | 495 | 1,784 | 2,279 | 330 | 1,190 | 1,520 |
| 1905–6 | - | - | 7,203 | 2,416 | 9,619 | 4,802 | 1,610 | 6,412 |
| 1906–7 | - | - | 513 | 1,955 | 2,468 | 342 | 1,303 | 1,645 |
| 1907–8 | - | - | 198 | 2,059 | 2,257 | 132 | 1,373 | 1,505 |
| 1st April to 3rd November 1908 | - | 148 | 520 | 668 | 98 | 346 | 444 | |
| 25,165 | 16,426 | 41,591 | 16,775 | 10,951 | 27,726 | |||
| *Exclusive of expenditure of £54,928, being the mortgage on the building and a floating debt of the Institute at the time of the transfer to this Department. | ||||||||
| The expenditure is charged in the ratio of Imperial Institute two-fifths and the London University three-fifths. |