HC Deb 04 August 1896 vol 43 cc1506-8

The deficiency arising in the produce of rates under the provisions of this Act shall be ascertained as follows:—

  1. (1.) The Secretary for Scotland shall ascertain and certify the amount which is to he taken as having been raised during the local financial year ending the fifteenth day of May, one thousand eight, hundred and ninety-six, by each rating authority by each rate to which this Act applies, and the portion of such amount which represents the occupiers' share of such rate in each rateable area.
  2. (2.) The Secretary for Scotland shall ascertain and certify the valuation of each rateable area to which this Act applies for the said year, and the portion of such valuation which represents the valuation of agricultural lands and heritages.
  3. (3.) That part of the occupiers' share of each rate which represents the proportion borne by the valuation of agricultural lands and heritages in the rateable area to the whole valuation of the rateable area shall to the extent of five-eighths thereof, ascertained and certified by the Secretary for Scotland, be taken as the deficiency arising in the produce of such rate from the provisions of this Act
  4. (4.) The Secretary for Scotland may amend, or for the purpose of meeting any alteration in an area or authority to 1507 which a certificate relates may vary a certificate under this Act, and any such amendment or variation shall have effect from the date of the original certificate, or any later date fixed by the said Secretary, but save as in this section provided, a certificate shall be final and binding on all persons.

MR. E. ROBERTSON

said he desired to raise a point of very grave importance, which involved the fate of the clause. What Clause 2 directed the Secretary for Scotland to do was—shorn of all verbiage—to ascertain the agricultural portion of the occupiers' share of the rate; to take five-eighths of that; that five-eighths so taken was to be called "the certified deficiency," and the aggregate of that entirely artificial sum was to be the amount to be paid to the local taxation account. Having ascertained that figure, the Secretary for Scotland was to distribute it amongst the parish councils and the district councils in the portions of the certified deficiencies without any reference to the provisions of the Bill. That necessarily involved the application of the money to purposes other than the relief of agricultural rates. He submitted that the scheme involved the application of money to purposes not mentioned in the reference on which the Bill was founded, and that it was not within the scope of the Bill and was, therefore, out of order.

* THE CHAIRMAN OF WAYS AND MEANS

said the hon. Member had raised the same point a few hours ago, on which he gave a ruling to the best of his ability. It was true that incidentally certain occupiers of land and heritages, non-agricultural, would be relieved, but eventually the relief would go to holders of agricultural land and heritages. The Bill, with the Amendment now inserted, simply made certain that the land would be valued at the lower rate in future. If he was correct in that view there was nothing out of order in it. In these matters they were not guided solely by the title of the Bill, but had to consider the general scope and intent of the Measure. Strictly there was no appeal from his decision, but if the hon. Member was not satisfied with it there would be another opportunity for him to raise the point of order.

MR. URE moved to omit "The deficiency arising in the produce of rates under the provisions of this Act shall be ascertained as follows." The object of the Amendment was, he said, to remove the ambiguity and difficulty which gave rise to discussion earlier in the evening.

Amendment agreed to.

MR. URE moved, in Sub-section (3), to omit the words, "taken as the deficiency arising in the produce of such rate from the provisions of this Act," and to insert instead thereof the following words:— the amount regulating the distribution of the balance of the money hereinafter mentioned in respect of that rate.

Amendment agreed to.

MR. T. SHAW moved, in Sub-section (4), after the words "the Secretary for Scotland may," to insert the words "in case of error."

Amendment agreed to.

Clause 2, as amended, ordered to stand part of the Bill.

Clause 3,—