Additional subordinate units may subsequently join the
confederation under the conditions of the federal constitution. Backward
areas which are unable to provide for an efficient provincial
expenditure, over and above their contribution to federal expenditure,
may be held back as territories directly controlled by the federal
authorities till they are financially and in other respects ripe for the
grant of provincial powers. If a federal scheme were really seriously
contemplated by the present Government they would have to adopt one of
two courses. They would either have to establish it simultaneously for
the whole United Kingdom, and in that case limit the powers and
functions of the provinces so narrowly as to make it possible for
Ireland to raise its provincial revenue without undue difficulty, the
rest of Ireland's needs being met by a substantial federal expenditure
carried out by federal officials. Or else they might begin by the
creation of a federal constitution with considerable provincial powers
for England, Scotland, and Wales, keeping back Ireland as a federal
territory till its economic and social conditions justified the
establishment of provincial institutions.
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