§ 6.43 p.m.
§ THE LORD CHANCELLORMy Lords, I rise to move that the Guardianship and Maintenance of Infants (No. 2) Bill be read a first time. It is not customary to make a speech when moving 981 the First Reading of a Bill, but I must explain the reason for doing so to-day. Your Lordships have heard that I called it the "No. 2 Bill." This Bill is identical with the Guardianship and Maintenance of Infants Bill which we passed last week, but owing to an error it is necessary to have a second Bill. There is in the Bill a clause which amends the Finance Act of 1944 by allowing maintenance payments to 30s., instead of 20s., and maintenance payments are paid without deducting tax. Therefore, it was a matter with which we in this House should not have dealt. We ought to have put ourselves right in dealing with this by virtue of a privilege Amendment. All unwittingly, without passing a privilege Amendment, we sent to another place a Bill dealing with a subject which ought to be dealt with by a privilege Amendment. The last thing we desire to do is to encroach on the privileges of another place. To overcome the difficulty the best thing we can do, and I understand that all your Lordships agree, is to pass through all its stages to-morrow a Bill in all respects identical with that which we passed last week, except that its short title will be the Guardianship and Maintenance of Infants (No. 2) Bill. It will be different from the other Bill only in that this time, when we deal with the Finance Act of 1944, we shall make it subject to a privilege Amendment. I thought I should explain to your Lordships why I was introducing this No. 2 Bill, which is identical in all other respects with No. 1. I beg to move that the Bill be read the first time.
§ Moved, That the Bill be now read 1a.— (The Lord Chancellor.)
§ 6.46 p.m.
§ VISCOUNT SWINTONMy Lords, the House is much obliged to the noble and learned Viscount the Lord Chancellor for his clear exposition. Certainly we should all wish to put ourselves right with another place and to do our duty in all respects. This appears to he the most convenient way of doing it. Having had this clear explanation from the noble and learned Viscount to-day, and as we already have a list of sixteen speakers on the Motion to be debated to-morrow, I suggest that, when the noble and learned Viscount moves all stages of the Bill to-morrow, the House should agree to 982 accept what has been said to-day as a complete justification for all these stages and should not seek any further debate on the matter.
§ On Question, Bill read la; and to be printed.