SECOND READING. (Hansard, 19 June 1882)

§ LORD O'HAGAN,

in moving that the Bill be now read a second time, said, its object was to alter to a large extent an existing Act of Parliament. Their Lordships would remember that in 1878 the noble and learned Earl, the then Lord Chancellor (Earl Cairns), introduced into their Lordships' House a Bill for the improvement of intermediate education in Ireland. That was a very wise, just, and impartial measure. Their Lordships accepted it unanimously, and it went through the House of Commons also with unanimity. The Act then passed was received in Ireland with uniform favour on all sides. It created great emulation, and, at the same time, it created new schools, improved the old schools, and gave a wonderful stimulus to the education of the country. The funds for carrying out the new system, which were taken from the Church Surplus Fund, proved, however, to be inadequate for the purpose, and when the Bill passed the House £1,000,000 was allocated by Vote to purposes of in- 1555 termediate education in Ireland. But that arrangement regarded only the boys of Ireland, and it was not contemplated that the girls should come within the operations of the measure at all. The change, however, was proposed in the House of Commons, and it was unanimously agreed that the Bill should apply to girls as well as boys. As was pointed out at the time, the result of the change was likely to be that the £1,000,000, although it was believed that it would be adequate for the young males, would not be adequate when the addition of the girls was made. It was stated that a difficulty would arise, and the noble and learned Earl (Earl Cairns) pledged the Government that if there should be, as anticipated, a want of additional means for this great national purpose, the question of supplying these means would be considered by the Government. The figures showing the progress of the system were remarkable, and might be of interest to their Lordships. In the year 1879—the Bill having passed in 1878—there were 3,671 boys and 979 girls under the scheme—a total of 4,630. In 1880, there were 4,693 boys and 1,477 girls—a total of 6,170; in 1881, the boys were 5,714, and the girls, 2,033—a total of 7,747. That showed a marvellous progress and a very satisfactory state of things indeed. But the result was that the Commissioners of Intermediate Education, applying themselves to the changed circumstances which were created by the addition of the girls, found that their means were not sufficient to meet the demands for result fees, exhibitions, and prizes which it was necessary to give for the purpose of carrying on the system, and in the year 1881 there came a deficit. There was consequently at that moment, he (Lord O'Hagan) was sorry to say, a considerable deficit with reference to the existing operations of the system, and it would be necessary for the Government to look carefully into the matter, and to fulfil, in the case of this system of intermediate education, the promise made by their Predecessors. But in the meantime, in the year 1879–80, there was a considerable surplus—a surplus of some £8,000 or £10,000; in 1881 that surplus became a deficit. The Act of Parliament provided that the Commissioners could accumulate the surplus from year to year and capitalize it; but it deprived 1556 them of the power of applying the surplus that might be accumulated one year to supplying a deficit of another year. The object of the present Bill was to give the Commissioners power to apply the surplus of 1879–80 to the deficit of 1881, and would give them continuous powers hereafter to apply surpluses in the same way. Ho would ask them to give the Bill a second reading.