Mr. O'CONNOR(by Private Notice) asked the Chief Secretary if he can give the House any information with regard to the tragic events that have taken place in Belfast during the week-end?
§ Sir H. GREENWOODI only received notice of the hon. Member's question at twenty minutes past two to-day. I wired to Belfast, but I regret that up to the present I have not received any information.
Mr. O'CONNORI did not mean any discourtesy to the right hon. Gentleman, but may I explain that I sent the question to him after I had read what appeared in the very long accounts in some of the evening papers to-day with regard to these events.
§ Mr. A. WILLIAMSDoes the right hon. Gentleman never get information of these events unless a question is put to him?
§ Sir H. GREENWOODCertainly. Reports are forwarded regularly to Dublin Castle from all parts of Ireland, and are sent, as soon as they are received, to me in London, but I have not received anything further than has already been issued to the public Press.
§ Mr. WILLIAMSIs there any good reason why the information takes so much longer to reach the right hon. Gentleman than it does to reach the ordinary sources of information?
§ Sir H. GREENWOODOrdinary sources of information can give what they wish. I can only speak on the information of those officials on whom I rely.