§ Mr. HENNIKER HEATONasked the President of the Board of Education whether his attention has been called to the interest and value of the information relating to the British Empire given by high officials and official representatives of the Colonial Office in our Colonies and Dependencies and Protectorates, and published by the Colonial Office under the title of Colonial. Reports; whether he will make arrangements to have these Reports sent to the schools of Great Britain and Ireland, to be read by the advanced scholars; and whether a similar arrangement can be made for the distribution and reading in our schools of the Diplomatic and Consular Reports showing the trade, commerce, and resources of all foreign countries, which are prepared and issued annually by the Foreign Office?
§ Mr. RUNCIMANI quite agree with the hon. Member as to the interest and value of the information contained in some of the Reports referred to. The provision of suitable literature for schools is not, however, a matter for the Board of Education. It concerns rather the local education authorities in the case of public elementary schools, and in the case of secondary schools, for which this type of literature would appear to be more suitable, either the local education authorities, as regards schools provided by them, or the governors of endowed secondary schools, as the case may be. I have, however, received a communication from my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Colonies with regard to the subject-matter of the question, and I hope shortly to discuss the matter more fully with him. I hope also to discuss the question, in so far as it concerns Diplomatic and Consular Reports, with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.