THIRD READING. (Hansard, 4 April 1892)

§ THE EARL OF ABERDEEN

My Lords, there is a slight verbal Amendment I shall ask your Lordships' permission to insert in this Bill. In order that there may be no misapprehension regarding the effect of the "acre" referred to in this Bill as the Statute acre I propose to insert the word "Statute" before "acre" at the end of the Bill. The only other remark I wish to make is with reference to some observations which were made by at least one noble Lord on the occasion of the Second Reading of this Bill, when some apprehension was expressed lest it might turn out to have an undesirable effect in the matter of increasing the evil already existing in many parts of Ireland as regards congested districts. I wish to remind the noble Lords that the principal 531 Acts which govern this Act make ample provision against sub-letting, or conacre or any other process which would have the effect of defeating the object of the Bill in the matter of allotments and overcrowding. With these few remarks I beg to move that the Bill be now read a third time.

§ EARL FORTESCUE

My Lords, I see this Bill has come up from the other House of Parliament, and therefore I conclude it comes up with the sanction and approval of Her Majesty's Government. If I am not mistaken the Irish Boards of Guardians are to be the bodies to set this extension of the previous labourers' allotments legislation into action. The fact of the Bill coming up to us with the sanction of Her Majesty's Government is not with me quite conclusive as to its prudence in leaving too much to be dealt with at the discretion of the Irish Boards of Guardians. I remember a few years ago protesting earnestly against giving the Boards of Guardians (whose action I know something of, and have had personal experience of upon my property in Ireland) too much discretion and power in providing dwellings for the labourers. I predicted that there would be, in spite of the sanction which was required from the Castle at Dublin, instances of jobbery, of favouritism, and of spite. Well, my Lords, I am far from saying that all Irish Boards of Guardians are capable of such conduct as that; but some, certainly, have been; and the working of that Act in those respects has not been encouraging I think to the Legislature to place more in their hands than is absolutely necessary. In the case of a slight extension of the amount of land to be taken for allotments there will not be the same facilities for jobbery, or partiality, of which in the more serious undertaking of providing dwellings we have seen various instances. I do not want to oppose this measure, but I take this opportunity of recording my profound distrust of the fairness and honest dealing of certain members of the Boards of Guardians of Ireland.