asked the Secretary to the Treasury why the books of the Lettera Agricultural Bank have not been audited for the last four years, and what steps are being taken to have them produced; how many similar banks in Ireland have not had their accounts audited for two years or more; and if he will urge upon the Assistant-Registrar of Friendly Societies in Ireland the desirability of a regular audit of these accounts?

The efforts of the Assistant-Registrar for Ireland having failed to secure the annual return of the Lettera Agricultural Bank, proceedings were instituted this year, and on 17th March last, a conviction was obtained. The number of agricultural banks, including credit societies, which are in arrear with their annual returns for two years or more, is approximately 100, by far the greater number of which consist of societies which have never done business. Every effort is made to secure the returns under the Act, where this can be done without too great expense. In the Lettera case the expenses to the Department, after giving credit for the £1 costs allowed, amount to over £20.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he formulated a scheme for State insurance against sickness and invalidity before January, 1910; whether the same was printed by the Government printers and circulated amongst members of the National Conference of Friendly Societies, and whether it was approved by them; and where Members of this House can obtain such scheme?

My right hon. Friend has nothing to add to the reply on this subject which he gave to the hon. Member on 26th April last.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many collectors of taxes there are in the Metropolitan district and in the United Kingdom, respectively; are they members of the permanent Civil Service; are they paid by salary alone, or do they receive any commission, and, if so, what, on the taxes they collect; what is the objection to allowing the taxpayer to pay his taxes direct to the Commissioners of Customs and Excise, instead of being required to pay them through a local collector of taxes; and is a payment to the collector of taxes as full, efficient, and final a payment as though it were made direct to the Commissioners themselves, or would the tax be again required from the taxpayer in case of default made in its payment to the Commissioners by the collector?

The answer to the first part of the question is that there are 300 collectors of taxes for the metropolitan district, and 7,870 for the United Kingdom respectively. With regard to the second and third parts, with the exception of sixty-eight collectors of Customs and Excise (who act as collectors of taxes in certain cases), the collectors are not members of the permanent Civil Service. They are paid by fixed salary, and not by commission. As regards the fourth part, there is no machinery provided by the Income Tax Acts empowering the Commissioners of Customs and Excise to receive taxes direct; and, consequently, the fifth part of the question does not arise.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether any persons other than Mr. Peter M'Girr, publican, of the public-house now sometimes known as the Imperial Hotel, Aughnacloy, were, in December last, made justices of the peace for county Tyrone on the recommendation of the Vice-President of the Board of Agriculture; was the Vice-President's recommendation of Peter M'Girr conveyed to the Lord Chancellor in the month of December, 1909, when it was obvious that an election was impending in South Tyrone at which the Vice-President would be a candidate; were any other persons appointed justices in any other part of Ireland, within two months of the General Election, on the recommendation of a candidate; and, if it be not a new practice to appoint publicans to be justices, on the eve of an election, on the recommendation of a candidate, will he suggest that the practice ought to be changed so as to remove even the appearance of an abuse of the power of appointment to meet political needs?

As I have already stated in reply to a question asked by the hon. Member on 25th April last, the Lord Chancellor does not consider it desirable to make a practice of stating the sources from which applications for appointment to the magistracy have reached him in individual cases other than those recommended to him by the Lieutenant of the county. As regards the remainder of the question, I must refer the hon. Member to my reply to the question on the same subject asked by him on 21st April last.

asked the President of the Board of Education whether it is still the intention of the Department to keep as confidential the information derived by the medical officer from the inspection of school children; and, if that be so, whether he has considered the impropriety of allowing authorities to appoint as medical inspectors persons who already hold the office of public vaccinator?

The Board remain at present of opinion that it is desirable that these reports should be regarded as confidential. As regards the second part of the question, I must refer the hon. Member to the answer he received from my right hon. Friend on 9th March.

asked the Home Secretary whether he can give for each licensing area in the county of Kent, including that portion of the county which is in the Metropolitan area, and for each year since 1904, the figures showing the number of liquor licences of all kinds, the population of each area, the number of licences the renewals of which were refused under the provisions of the Licensing Act, 1904, and the amount paid in compensation?

All the information desired is to be found in the annual volumes of licensing statistics, and I must refer the Noble Lord to those volumes. The number of liquor licences is given in Table I., columns 2 to 9; the population in Table I., column 19, and the number of licences the renewal of which has been refused under the Licensing Act, 1904, with the amount paid in compensation, in Table II. (A) and (B).

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what change, if any, has been made in the powers and duties of assistant inspectors of factories; whether they are still forbidden to enter factories, even for the purpose of checking overtime and other forms of illegal employment; whether the position of these officers, which the Home Secretary stated to the House on 1st August, 1906, could not be maintained, still remains unaltered; and what steps he proposes to take in the matter?

The changes which have been made in the position and duties of the inspectors' assistants were announced by my predecessor in his reply to a question of the hon. Member on 18th February, 1907. Those arrangements are still in force. I would refer the hon. Member to the answer which I have given to his other question.

asked the Home Secretary whether the new duties stated to the House on 18th July, 1907, as having been allocated to some of the assistant inspectors of factories, have been satisfactorily performed; and whether he contemplates any extension of these duties in the direction of routine inspection of factories?

The chief inspector informs me that the more responsible duties entrusted to the higher grade of assistants have on the whole been performed satisfactorily, and that in particular some good work has been done in connection with dock inspection. In addition to the special duties referred to by my predecessor, when explaining the arrangements made by him in this matter to the House, these assistants can be usefully employed, when inspecting workshops in rural or outlying districts, to inspect factories for detection of employment during illegal hours or on holidays, and it is proposed to use them more extensively than hitherto in this way. No other modifications of the present arrangements are in contemplation. The duty for which the class of assistants was primarily established is the inspection of workshops, and these additional duties can only be given to them so far as is possible without sacrifice of the thorough inspection of workshops.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India if he will state what decision, if any, the Secretary of State has come to in regard to the griev- ances set forth in the memorials submitted to him by the Bombay political officers; and whether he can state what concessions he proposes to make?

The Secretary of State has approved, with effect from 1st January last, the introduction of a time scale for the lower grades of the Bombay Political Department, which will give an officer entering the Department an initial pay of Rs. 500 a month, whatever his standing in the Army may be, and will entitle him to an increase of Bs. 50 a year until he completes his ninth year of service in the Department. From his tenth year he will draw Rs. 1,000, from his thirteenth year Rs. 1,100, and from his sixteenth year Rs. 1,200 until he receives promotion to one of the superior grades. The introduction of the time-scale will involve the automatic withdrawal of acting allowances and exchange compensation allowance, except where the withdrawal of that allowance would involve an immediate loss to a particular officer. Further, the increase has been approved of the pay of one superior appointment in the Bombay Political Department from Rs. 1,800 a month to Rs. 2,250 a month.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether there is any record in the Foreign Office of any overtures either in 1899 or in 1901 between Great Britain and Germany for the accession of Great Britain to the Triple Alliance between Germany, Austria, and Italy, or are there any papers relating thereto; were any overtures begun in January, 1901, and broken off in March, 1901, for any understanding with Germany, or any joint action with Germany; and is there any correspondence that he can lay upon the Table for the information of Parliament?

I cannot answer questions of this kind about relations between Great Britain and other Powers ten years ago.