§ Mr. KILBRIDEasked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he is aware that the Petty Sessions authorities at Athy insist on the payment of fees in stamps to the amount of 3s. on each order under the Irish Education Acts that a child do attend school; will he state what part of these fees are charged in respect of the order in the magistrate's Court and what part in respect of the copy order issued to the officer of the school attendance committee; will he state why it is that in the Dublin Metropolitan Police Courts the entire fees charged in respect of similar orders only amount to 2s.; and, if these are the correct fees, what authority the Petty Sessions authorities at Athy have for charging the increased fees?
§ Mr. BIRRELLIn Petty Sessions districts the Court fees in these cases are regulated by the Petty Sessions Act, and ordinarily amount to 2s., but in some districts the magistrates insist, as they do at Athy, that a copy of the attendance order shall have been served on the parent or guardian of the child before they will convict for non-compliance with the attendance order. This copy must be stamped with 1s. in Petty Sessions stamps. At the Dublin Metropolitan Police Courts the fees in these cases amount to 2s., and are regulated by the Dublin Police Act.