§ Mr. KERR-SMILEYasked the Chief Secretary for Ireland if he will say when Roman Catholic lady teachers receive notice that they are to be superseded by nuns, graded or ungraded, and appeal to the Board of National Education for protection, if it is the custom of the Board to hold inquiries in such cases, and if they find the noticed teachers competent and free from reproach do the Commissioners protect the competent though noticed teachers by declining to recognise their successors, as is done in the case of evicted competent Protestant teachers; could he say how many Roman Catholic schoolmistresses have been displaced by nuns during the past six years; and is he aware if any record is kept of what befalls the disemployed teachers?
§ Mr. BIRRELLThe Commissioners of National Education inform me that, national teachers of all denominations have the right of appeal to the Commissioners under Rule 96 of the Code. The Commissioners determine in each case whether a formal inquiry is necessary or not. The Commissioners can express no-opinion on the hypothetical case raised in the question. Their action in particular cases of appeal depends largely on the circumstances of the case, the evidence given at the inquiry, and the report of the inspector who held the inquiry. Thirty-one schoolmistresses have been replaced by nuns during the past six years. Of these, ten retired from the service with retiring allowances, eighteen were appointed to other schools, two served in a temporary capacity, and one left the service.