HC Deb 06 August 1894 vol 28 cc135-6
MR. FIELD

I beg to ask the President of the Board of Trade whether his attention has been repeatedly directed to the consignment rates now in use on various Irish railways, containing illegal conditions contracting the carrying Corporations out of any liability whatever; and whether he will communicate with the Companies and request them to discontinue this practice?

MR. BRYCE

My attention has been directed to this matter, and I concur in the reply given by my predecessor at the Board of Trade to a question put by the hon. Member on the 13th of April last. My right hon. Friend said— Whether the conditions of the notes are reasonable or not, involves legal considerations of great nicety, but the existing law is amply sufficient to deal with such cases, and the persons aggrieved have the remedy in their own hands. I may point out that if the conditions referred to in the question are illegal, as the question states, interference on my part is unnecessary, because the trader may disregard them. The proper course for them will be to test their legality before the Courts.

MR. FIELD

Am I to gather from the reply of the right hon. Gentleman that these traders have no resource except to go to law with a great carrying Corporation, and that the Railway Department of the Board of Trade is incompetent to help them?

MR. SPEAKER

Order, order!