“NOT CONTRARY TO LAW.”

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLVIII, Issue 3665, 14 July 1927, Page 3

“NOT CONTRARY TO LAW.”

The Wellington School Committees’ Association recently decided to obtain the opinion of ite honorary solicitor on the legality of the action of the Minister of Education in giving permission to representatives of the Bible in Schools’. League to use school registers for the purpose of obtaining the names and addresses of parents. “If all that the Minister did was to give permission to certain persons to enter the schools and ascertain from school registers the names and addresses of the parents of the scholars, I cannot see that he has done anythng to which your association eaq, take exception in law',” wrote the solicitor in reply. “As I understand the matter, a scdiool committee has not the sole right of saying what persons shall enter a school, and for what purpose. Section 49 (7) of the Education Act, 1914, enables a committee to grant as it deems fit the use of the school buildings for the purpose of moral and religious instruction. If the Minister merely permitted the representatives of the Bible in Schools’ League to enter , the schools to search the registers, it seems clear that he did not grant any use of the buildings 'for the purpose of religious instruction. At the most, he merely granted the use of the building for the purpose of making inquiries, In the absence of any evidence of anything further than permission to enter and inspect registers*l am bound to advise that I cannot see anything contrary to law' in what he has done.” 1