§ Sir. C. KINLOCH-COOKEasked the Minister of Health what arrangements are made for repaying the large sums of money borrowed by certain boards of guardians; and how it is proposed to carry on the ordinary services of the Poor Law in the event of the local rates being found insufficient for the repayment and redemption of these loans?
Mr. CHAMBERLAINIn the great majority of cases sums borrowed by boards of guardians for the purpose of meeting their current expenditure are being repaid by the ordinary method of equal annual instalments of principal and interest. In cases in which an overdraft rather than a loan for a definite period has been raised, the amounts of the overdrafts outstanding are being progressively reduced. In a small number of instances in which loans have been advanced by me on the recommendation of the Goschen Committee, arrangements are made from time to time for the postponement of the repayments of capital or of capital and interest, where I am satisfied that it is unreasonable in the interests of the ratepayers to require repayment on the prescribed dates.