§ Mr. Oliverasked the Home Secretary whether he will instruct clerks to justices to give receipts in respect of moneys received by them in respect of fines and costs and thereby make the practice adopted by some clerks applicable in all the courts of summary jurisdiction?
§ Sir S. HoareI believe that it is the general practice to give receipts in respect of fines and I am in full sympathy with the view that this practice should be universally adopted. I have no power to give any instructions in the matter, but I would refer to the answer I gave on 3rd March in which I pointed out that the failure of some clerks to adopt a proper system of giving receipts is one of the consequences of the present system of paying clerks, and that a review of this system is one of the functions of the Departmental Committee recently appointed to consider the conditions of service, etc., of clerks to justices.