§ Mr. KELLYasked the Secretary to the Treasury whether a letter was received at the Treasury dated 4th May last, addressed to him by Mr. Edward M'Fadden, solicitor for Mr. William M'Fadden and forty-five 21 other old age pensioners in the Letter-kenny, county Donegal, district, asking for the restoration of their pension books, of which they were deprived by the postmaster at Letterkenny on 29th April, informing him that appeals were pending in these cases, which were the subject of proceedings in the King's Bench, Ireland, and stating that the immediate proceedings would be taken for the restoration of the books unless their return was ordered; whether any reply was sent to this letter; and whether any of the books had since been returned to the pensioners?
The HON. MEMBERalso asked whether the right hon. Gentleman could state on what legal grounds the pension books of seventy-six old age pensioners of Letterkenny, county Donegal, district were, on 29th April last and subsequent dates, taken from the pensioners by the postmaster; on whose authority were the books thus taken; whether, in all these cases, legal proceedings as to the validity of appeals in the cases were then pending; whether it was proposed to return the books to the pensioners pending the decision of the Local Government Board in the question of the validity of the appeals; and whether an immediate refund of the arrears of the pensions in these cases would be made in the event of the pensions being restored to the claimants?
§ Mr. HOBHOUSEI fear I am not in a position to give full answers to these questions at the moment. I regret that any delay should have occurred in dealing with this matter, which is a very important one. It was in any case necessary to wait until a decision was given by the Court of Appeal on the application of the Local Government Board for a mandamus to compel the local sub-committee to deliver up the documents required in these cases, and that decision has only just been given. The matter will now be further considered at once, and I will let the hon. Member know what is being done.
§ Mr. PATRICK O'BRIEN (for Mr. Kelly)asked whether, in the case of the Local Government Board against the Letterkenny, county Donegal, pension sub-committee, in which both the King's Bench Division and the Court of Appeal in Ireland have unanimously held that the contention of the Board in asking the committee to deliver up to them certain papers was not justified and in which the committee were awarded costs against 22 the Board by the King's Bench Division, but deprived of them, although succeeding in that contention, by the Court of Appeal, he will give directions that the Board should pay the costs incurred by the pension committee in defending the case in which they were proved to be all along right in their contention?
The HON. MEMBERalso asked whether an application was made in the King's Bench Division in Ireland in the month of May last, at the suit of the Local Government Board for Ireland, against the Letterkenny pension sub-committee for an order for a mandamus for the delivery up to the Board of certain papers in connection with alleged appeals in the cases of seventy-six old age pensioners, and in which the committee alleged the service of the notice of appeals was not given within the prescribed time; whether the application was unanimously dismissed with costs by the King's Bench Division; whether an appeal was taken from this decision by the Local Government Board; whether the appeal was, on 13th June last, unanimously refused by the Court of Appeal; whether before the appeal was decided the old age pensioners were deprived of their pension books; whether the conduct of the Local Government Board in these proceedings has his sanction; and whether he will see that in future the public money is not spent for no useful purpose in such a manner?
§ Mr. BIRRELLI am not at present in a position to reply to these two questions, as the Local Government Board have not yet received a copy of the judgment of the Court of Appeal in the case referred to.