§ Mr. GINNELLasked the Chief Secretary if he will state the amount of law costs paid in each of the two last completed financial years by the Mullingar, Delvin, and Coole District Councils, speci- 2268W fying in each case the amount connected with the working of the Labourers Acts; if there is a contract in force for doing all the council's legal work for a bulk sum each year, how much has been paid under the contract, and how much as extra; and, if it is not the payee himself who alleges the extra work and fixes the amount to be paid for it, by whom is this done?
§ Mr. BIRRELLThe law costs paid by the Mullingar and Coole Rural District Councils were as follows:—
Year ended 31st Mar., 1909. 1910. Mullingar Rural District Council— Costs under Labourers £ £ Acts 1,232 819 General Costs 67 296 Coole Rural District Council— Costs under Labourers Acts 243 — General Costs 31 — There was no contract in either of these cases for carrying out the legal work of the council for a bulk sum. The law costs paid by the Delvin Rural District Council amount to £60 a year, none of which is chargeable to the Labourers Acts, the terms of the solicitor's appointment being that he is to receive a standing salary of £60 a year irrespective of the volume of legal work to be done under the Labourers Acts or other Acts.