§ Mr. DEVLIN(by Private Notice) asked the Prime Minister whether, in view of the charge made in this House that Major Price visited Mr. John MacNeill in prison and offered him certain terms, and of the admission made by the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland that Major Price had visited Mr. MacNeill in prison for the purpose of obtaining information, he will appoint a Select Committee of this House to investigate the conduct of Major Price and to inquire by whose authority Major Price was authorised to offer terms to a prisoner awaiting trial?
§ The PRIME MINISTERI believe this matter has been very fully investigated by my right hon. Friend the Chief Secretary, but as my hon. Friend himself has privately communicated to me that he has further facts which he would like to bring to my notice, and I will defer giving my answer to the question until I have received them.
§ Mr. DEVLINIn view of the fact that this is not a private matter, but one of vital concern to all concerned, and to the House of Commons itself, will an open and free public investigation take place into all the facts?
§ The PRIME MINISTERUntil I have the further information which my hon. Friend has been good enough to promise me, I should not like to give any definite answer to that question.
§ Mr. DILLONHas the right hon. Gentleman's attention been drawn to the fact that the Chief Secretary for Ireland stated in the House that he had made no inquiry of Mr. MacNeill or did not take any steps to obtain his version of what took place?
§ The CHIEF SECRETARY for IRELAND (Mr. Duke)If I may be allowed to answer that, the answer I gave was that I had assumed, and, in fact, had ascertained, that Mr. John MacNeill's account of this matter was the account which the hon. Member for, I think, Limerick read in the House just before the adjournment. I had assumed that that was John MacNeill's statement.