Mr. J. W. WILSONasked the Minister of Health within what limits the grants of outdoor relief granted by guardians may be classified in municipalities, and in urban and rural districts, respectively; and to what extent his Department exercises any control by advice or otherwise, with a view to avoiding excessive variations in adjoining districts?
§ Sir A. MONDI am afraid that it would not be practicable to classify scales of relief by reference to the urban or rural character of the unions, especially as many boards of guardians do not work upon scales of relief at all. In the absence of quite exceptional circumstances excessive variations between adjoining districts are obviously undesirable, and it is the policy of my Department to take such action as is open to it with a view to avoiding such variations.