asked the Minister for Local Government and Public Health whether he is aware of, and can state, the number of prosecutions under the Street Trading Act, 1926, in Dublin, and whether he is prepared now to exercise his powers under section 6 of that Act, and order an inquiry for the purpose of the making of by-laws by the Dublin Corporation.
CEISTEANNA—QUESTIONS. ORAL ANSWERS. - STREET TRADING PROSECUTIONS.
The answer to the first portion of the question is in the negative. The second portion has already been answered in reply to a similar question from the Deputy on the 16th ultimo.
I know the second part of the question has been answered, but is the Minister aware that street traders generally and numbers of the working classes are not in the habit of reading statutory notices in the morning papers? Is he aware, also, that the notice regarding the provision of by-laws under the Street Traders Act was published on the 6th and 9th of December last in the "Irish Times" and "Independent" respectively; that on the 18th January the Minister himself sanctioned the by-laws, and that the street traders for the first time knew that such things had been sanctioned when they got a list of prohibited streets on the 5th February? On a number of occasions since attempts have been made by myself and other Deputies of this House, and interested people outside, to get into touch with the City Commissioners with a view to placing the views of the street traders before them, and these attempts have been in vain. I ask the Minister to take these facts into consideration and agree to the holding of some sort of inquiry into the grievance of those people. These people have been put off the street without having an opportunity of knowing anything about the matter until the notice was slung at them.
The position is that I have no power at this stage to order an inquiry. My powers under Section 6 are limited to the holding of a preliminary inquiry. At the time notice was given, no objection was raised, and there was no justification for holding the inquiry. I have no power subject to approving of the Code Regulations made by the Commissioners. Any representations that the Deputy has to make should be addressed to the Commissioners, but in view of what he has said, I will take the matter up with the Commissioners myself.
Will the Minister make a recommendation to the Commissioners that all prosecutions should cease pending the inquiry that might result in allocating reasonable sites to those people who have been deprived of their means of livelihood? There were a number of prosecutions in the Court this morning.
I have made it clear that I have no power to hold an inquiry. There will be no inquiry.
Would the Minister make recommendations that the prosecutions would cease pending his interview with the Commissioners which he has just promised he would have on this matter?
I could not undertake to do that.
In view of the great hardships these people are suffering from at the present moment from being hunted from pillar to post, I would ask the President to interest himself in their cases, and see that the prosecutions would cease.
Is the grievance in the fact that people have been hunted from the Pillar to the Post Office?