§ Mr. BECKERasked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies what steps have been taken to ensure that citizens of the South of Ireland, now resident in England, can recover either interest or capital for moneys invested in Irish property and land, as since the signing of the Irish Treaty some investors have not received any payments?
§ Mr. ORMSBY-GOREIt is provided by Article 73 of the Constitution that the laws in force in the Irish Free State at the date of the coming into operation of the Constitution shall continue to be of full force and effect until repealed or amended, and by Article 75 that until new courts have been established the Supreme Court of Judicature, County Courts, Courts of Quarter Sessions, and Courts of Summary Jurisdiction as at present existing shall continue to exercise the same jurisdiction as heretofore. These laws and these courts afford the usual remedies for any wrongful withholding of moneys due; and while it is true that in some parts of Ireland these remedies are not at present fully effective, I have reason to hope that they will in due course become so. If the hon. Member has in mind that His Majesty's Government should in any way guarantee the capital, or the interest thereon, of money936W invested in Irish property or land, I regret that they could not see their way to select this form of security for such exceptionally favourable treatment.