§ 41. Dr. CHAPPLEasked the right hon. Gentleman whether he has received resolutions from various school boards in Scotland with regard to the recent decision of the Court declaring payment for medical 409 treatment of school children to be illegal; and whether he proposes to take any action in the matter?
Mr. McKINNON WOODResolutions of the nature referred to have reached me, and the matter is at present receiving my consideration.
§ 42. Dr. CHAPPLEasked the right hon. Gentleman whether the Scotch Board of Education intends to revive the suspended regulation with regard to the reduction in the size of classes; and, if so, will he, before he sanctions such a change, take into consideration the fact that if this regulation had been enforced it would have imposed a cost of between £3,000 and £4,000 for additional accommodation and between £300 and £350 per annum for additional teachers on the Kilsyth burgh school board, in whose district 1d. in the £ on the school rate only yields between £75 and £80; and, if he finds this typical of country districts generally, will he abandon the proposal?
Mr. McKINNON WOODThe Regulation in question will be further suspended for the ensuing school year. The Kilsyth burgh school board appear to be under a serious misapprehension as to the effect of the minute. It appears from the figures available that, instead of being obliged to incur the additional expenditure referred to in the question, the board would receive an increased Grant subject to a slight rearrangement of one or two classes which apparently would not involve the appointment of a single extra teacher. It is undoubtedly the case that the operation of the minute would result in an increase of Grant in the case of the majority of boards, particularly in the rural districts.