SECOND READING. (Hansard, 15 February 1893)

§ *SIR JAMES WHITEHEAD (Leicester)
I rise to move the Second Reading of this Bill.

§ MR. D. PLUNKET (Dublin University)
May I ask if this Bill has been printed?

§ SIR J. WHITEHEAD
Yes.

§ MR. D. PLUNKET
I have inquired at the office, and have been unable to get a copy of the Bill.

§ SIR J. WHITEHEAD
Then I should like to ascertain, Mr. Speaker, whether I am in Order in going on with the Bill?

§ *MR. SPEAKER
There is nothing out of Order in the hon. Gentleman proceeding to discuss the Bill, although, of course, the fact that it is not in the hands of hon. Members would militate very strongly against the House coming to any decision on it.

§ *SIR J. WHITEHEAD
I feel I am placed at a very great disadvantage, inasmuch as, having had myself but little Parliamentary experience, I have had to rely for guidance upon friends who are Members of the House. I was informed by many of my friends that there was not the slightest possibility of the Bill coming on to-day. I am, therefore, not prepared to deal with the subject as fully as I should otherwise have been able to do. I may say, however, that the object of the Bill is to strengthen the hands of the Board of Trade, so as to enable them to deal with disputes that may arise from time to time between the Railway Companies on the one hand, and traders and agriculturists on the other. At present the Board of Trade has only very limited powers in this respect. Clause 31, Sub-section 2, of the Railway and Canal Act of 1888 runs as follows:— The Board of Trade it they think that there is reasonable ground for the complaint may thereupon call upon the Railway Company for an explanation, and endeavour to settle amicably the difference between the complainers and the Railway Companies. Now, Sir, under existing circumstances I, and those who are acting with me in this matter, feel that the Board of Trade need to have their hands strengthened to enable them to say what a fair and reasonable charge is in the event of a dispute arising between a Railway Company and a trader. The Bill proposes to give the following powers to the Board:— When any complaint shall have been made to the Board of Trade that a Railway or a Canal Company is charging the complainant an unreasonable toll, rate, or charge, the Board 1535 of Trade shall inquire into such complaint, and shall determine what is a reasonable toll, rate, or charge, and shall give notice of their decision to the Railway or Canal Company, and thereupon any such charge by the Railway or Canal Company in excess of the toll, rate, or charge found to be reasonable shall be deemed to be an illegal charge. It is quite unnecessary for me to point out to the House what a very serious position the country is in at the present time in regard to railway rates. The importance of the subject was manifested to-day by the very large deputation which waited upon the President of the Board of Trade in one of the Committee-rooms upstairs. I venture to say that that deputation, composed as it was of those who represent all shades of political opinion in this House, and all classes of trade and agriculture in this country, was one of the most influential and important that ever presented itself before the head of a Government Department. In view of the short time which is placed at my disposal to-day, I shall not go into details in regard to what I feel would be gained by the community under this Bill, but I may say that the chief advantage appears to me to be that when once it was known to the Railway Companies that the Board of Trade was in front of them and that they might settle any dispute which had arisen between the company and a trader, they would hesitate very much before appearing before the Board of Trade. They would be anxious to arrive at a fair and reasonable settlement for this, if for no other reason, that any decision the Board of Trade might give would, in all probability, establish a precedent on the point dealt with. We do not desire in the slightest degree to interfere with the Act which was passed by this House in the last Parliament, except in the direction of strengthing one of its clauses—a clause which lead its origin, I believe, in the judgment of the right hon. Gentleman who is now President of the Board of Trade. The subject is one of the deepest possible importance, and I think I may say that the great majority of the traders and agriculturists of the country feel that there should be some umpire placed between them and the Railway Company—an umpire whose decision should be 1536 final Our desire is that the tribunal should be simple, should be cheap, and should be decisive. I will now move the Second Reading of the Bill, which I have had printed, and which will soon be in the hands of every Member.

§ THE PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD OF TRADE (Mr. MUNDELLA,) Sheffield, Brightside
I hardly expected that this Bill would have come on to-day, as I have not been able to secure a copy of it, and of course I am not able to express an opinion about a measure I have not seen. I have elsewhere to-day expressed my sympathy with those traders who at the present time are suffering from the excessive charges which have been made by the Railway Companies since the 1st of January. I trust the House will be sufficiently patient to give the companies the time they ask for, which I hope will not be longer than the period between now and Easter, for the revision of their rates. If by that time the companies have not made such a reasonable settlement with traders as we have a right to expect from them I shall myself be prepared to introduce some measure which will effectually deal with the whole question.

§ MR. HUNTER (Aberdeen, N.)
I was one of those who heard the statement made by the President of the Board of Trade to-day, and I was very much disappointed, because he did not seem to me to appreciate the situation in which we are placed. The fact is, Sir, that the public have now realised what perhaps they did not realise before—namely, that the idea of protecting them from unreasonable charges by means of a maximum rate is a mockery, a delusion, and a snare. The maximum rates have been prepared with the utmost skill and care. No stone was left unturned by the Board of Trade to make the new maximum rates as perfect as possible, and the only result is that these rates, instead of leaving placed a curb upon the unreasonableness of the Railway Companies, have become a shield behind which they are able to shelter 1537 themselves from the traders. The object of this Bill, as I understand it, is to destroy that shield, to bring the companies back to the principles of the Common Law with regard to reasonableness of charges, and to provide that some cheap, simple, and expeditious mode shall be devised by the Board of Trade for determining, in cases of dispute, what charges are reasonable and what are not. I concur with the right hon. Gentleman in thinking that as the Bill is not printed we cannot ask the House to adopt it to-day; but I trust that when the right hon. Gentleman has given further consideration to the subject, he will see it is necessary that something more should be done than merely to give time to the companies.

§ SIR J. WHITEHEAD
After the statement made to-day by the President of the Board of Trade in another place, and after what he has just said, I think it better to withdraw the Bill.