§ Considered in Committee.
§ (IN THE COMMITTEE.)
§ [Mr. WHITLEY in the Chair.]
§ Clause 1:
§ Sir HILDRED CARLILEThe Government are taking business rather rapidly. I should like to know something about the nature of this Bill.
§ The CHIEF SECRETARY for IRELAND (Mr. Birrell)The object of this Bill is, at the expense of the Corporation of Belfast, who have by a unanimous resolution expressed their willingness to do it, to augment the salary of each of the two resident magistrates of Belfast by £200 a year, with a corresponding increase of pension, which also will be borne relatively, by the corporation. The necessity for this arises from the great growth of Belfast, and from the fact that when the salaries were fixed at £675 Belfast was a much smaller place than it is now. The population was 180,000, and the number of cases in the police-court about 22,000. In 1909 the population was 386,576, and the number of cases in the police-court had increased proportionately, I am sorry to say, to 63,465. In 1909 each magistrate sat in the court 264 days. In 1887 a Commission presided over by a judge recommended that the salaries should be increased.
§ Clause agreed to.
§ Clauses 2 to 5 agreed to.
§ Bill reported, without Amendment; read the third time, and passed.