§ Mr. DEVLINasked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland whether he can state the amount of money raised locally, by voluntary subscriptions, for the relief of the present distress in Belfast, the amount contributed by the Local Government Board, and the conditions attached to the Board's grant; the amount received from other sources, if any; the total number of persons employed on relief work, the nature of the work, and the rate of wages paid; and the number of employable persons still unemployed in Belfast?
§ Mr. BIRRELLI understand that the Lord Mayor of Belfast has undertaken to raise £2,000 for the relief of distress in that city, but I do not know whether he has as yet obtained it. The sums granted from the Unemployed Fund have reached a total of £4,000, no special conditions being attached to the several grants. The Local Government Board have, however, on each occasion satisfied themselves that the money already advanced had been properly expended before rcommending a further grant. A sum of £697 has been raised by a local rate, in addition to the grants from the Unemployed Fund, but this can only be expended on administration, not on actual employment. 2,454 different individuals have been employed during the entire course of the relief operations, and 220 employable persons are still unemployed. The total number of employable persons on the register is therefore 2,674. The latest information available shows that the weekly number employed varied from 69 in the week ended the 24th October to 624 in the week ended 16th January. The work on which the men have been employed consists of widening streets, drainage, and public park development, and the rate of wages paid has been 16s. per week.