§ Mr. MOONEYasked the Chief Secretary if he can state what educational advantages the Commissioners of National Education assume is derived from withholding their civil rights from Irish national teachers; whether he is aware that the Managers' Association, the Teachers' Congress, and various public boards in Ireland have adopted resolutions in favour of granting full civil rights to the teachers; and whether the Commissioners will eliminate these restrictions on the liberty of the teachers from the next issue of their rules and regulations?
§ Mr. BIRRELLI am informed that the question of civil rights of teachers was 1559W considered by the Commissioners of National Education on several occasions in 1906 and 1907 when the restrictions imposed on teachers were relaxed to a considerable extent. The Commissioners in-from me that the existing restrictions are designed for the real advantage of the teachers. As I stated in reply to a previous question on the subject the Commissioners claim that general abstention of the teachers from local political quarrels has added materially to their usefulness. They inform me that resolutions have from time to time been received from different associations of managers, from the Teachers' Congress and from other public bodies to the effect that unreasonable restrictions of the civil rights of teachers should be removed. The responsibility in the matter rests entirely with the Commissioners, who do not consider that it would be in the interests of the teachers or the schools to modify still further the rules on the subject.