HIGHWAYS (SOUTH WALES) BILL. (Hansard, 30 April 1851)

§ DR. NICHOLL
objected to the measure, as one of partial legislation for South Wales, brought in without the slightest necessity shown for it. If the Bill was really good for South Wales, he thought it would be good for England, and therefore he should move that it be an instruction to the Committee to include England in the Bill. If that was lost, he would vote against the second reading; and if the second reading was carried, he would move that the county of Glamorgan be exempted from the operation of the Bill.

§ MR. WILLIAM WILLIAMS
thought that there was no more necessity for a Bill of this kind applying to South Wales, than to any other part of the United Kingdom. It would create a costly machinery, which was quite unnecessary.

§ MR. RICE TREVOR
said, the Bill only made it obligatory on South Wales to do that which every parish in England might now do if it thought fit—that was, to establish paid surveyors of highways. It was hoped that the effect would be to diminish rather than to increase expense.

§ SIR GEORGE TYLER
said, he felt it his duty to move, that the Bill be committed that day six months. The measure was considered particularly objectionable in the county he had the honour to represent, where it had been condemned by a full meeting of magistrates. He had many objections to the measure; but, above all, he objected to South Wales being made a corpus vile for experimental legislation. The Bill provided for the appointment of surveyors of highways; but he considered that such a provision was wholly unnecessary. He believed that this Bill would increase the cost of maintaining the highways, and he thought that it was inexpedient to increase the burdens of the tenant-farmers at the present time.

§ VISCOUNT EMLYN
said, that he did not desire to make South Wales an exception to the rest of England and Wales. He introduced this Bill last year, when the Government brought in their Bill for the management of highways in England, in order that the system in both these portions of the United Kingdom might be the same; and although the Government Bill had not been proceeded with, he felt justified in reintroducing this Bill in the present Session, believing that it met the approval of the inhabitants of South Wales, and expecting that the Government would have again brought forward a Bill for the management of the highways similar to that of last Session. There was no novelty introduced into the Bill, the clauses of 357 which were taken from the General Highway Act. He believed that the people of South Wales were not opposed to this Bill, and that it would effect a desirable improvement in our highway legislation; but at the same time, he did not wish to press it against the opinions of the representatives for South Wales. He should leave himself in the hands of the House.

MR. CORNEWALL LEWIS
said, that he was in favour of the principle of the Bill, which was, that districts should be formed by a union of parishes under one board, who should appoint a paid surveyor to manage the highways of the district. There was a power to form such unions under the General Highway Act, but it had been availed of in very few instances; although where such unions had been formed, the highways had been better managed, and at a less cost, than under the previous separate parochial management. He could not see why, if the people of South Wales wished the management of their highways to be subject to a particular Act, that that House, by passing such an Act, should be said to make them a corpus vile for experiments. It was for the inhabitants of those counties and their representatives in Parliament to consider how far they wished the principle of the Bill to be applied to that part of the country; and as he thought that this question would be best considered in Committee, he should support the committal of the Bill.

§ MR. RICHARDS
said, that some legislation was absolutely necessary on this subject, for the roads in South Wales were now very badly managed; the expenditure was not under any regular control, and the surveyors were men of no great experience. He thought that the Bill was favourably regarded by the inhabitants of those counties. The only objection was founded on the apprehension of increased expense; but he was satisfied that the improved management of the roads would amply compensate for any expense entailed by the measure before the House.

§ MR. WATKINS
, as one of the representatives of the county of Brecknock, wished that county to be excluded from the operation of the Bill.

§ MR. WILLIAM WILLIAMS
said, that a Bill of this nature should have been brought forward by the Government. He was opposed to special legislation for a small portion of the country.

§ SIR BENJAMIN HALL
believed that the Bill would confer great benefit upon South Wales, and he, therefore, hoped that the noble Lord (Viscount Emlyn) would not consent to the Amendment. In whatever other respects Glamorgan might be like an English county, there was no resemblance in the state of its roads, for there was not a district in the United Kingdom which had worse roads. He believed that that Bill would lead to an improvement in the state of the roads; and he thought that the magistrates and Members for South Wales were quite able to undertake the introduction of a measure of that kind without requiring the intervention of Government. A great deal of the evils which subsisted in the management of the Welsh roads had been put an end to by 359 the legislation which followed the Rebecca riots; and he believed that this measure would prevent a great deal of the discontent which still subsisted on account of the disgraceful state of the roads, which were entrusted to overseers and surveyors who were perfectly incompetent to their management.

§ SIR GEORGE GREY
said, that the Amendment, if carried, would be fatal to the Bill; for although South Wales had been recognised by the Legislature as a separate district for exclusive legislation, a measure, the operation of which was confined to three counties only, would not be a public but a private Bill, and must therefore be introduced and carried forward according to the standing orders applying to such Bills.

SIR FRANKLAND LEWIS
said, that the administration of the highway rates now levied was marked by much ignorance, partiality, and unfair pressure upon individuals; and he was confident that a measure of this kind would be extremely beneficial to the counties to which it referred. Some such measure as this must, in fact, be applied to the whole kingdom.

§ VISCOUNT EMLYN
said, that he quite agreed with the right hon. Secretary of State for the Home Department that this Amendment would be fatal to the Bill; at all events he should so regard it, for if the Amendment were carried he should withdraw the Bill.

§ MR. HUME
said, that no good could arise from going into Committee upon the Bill, seeing that no two Members for South Wales agreed in opinion with respect to it, and he therefore advised the noble Lord to withdraw it, in order that a complete and general measure might be brought in by the Government.