HC Deb 18 July 1904 vol 138 cc290-1
MR. FORDE RIDLEY (Bethnal Green, S.W.)

I beg to ask the First Lord of the Treasury, having regard to the fact that the Report of Sir E. Bradford's Committee has been laid upon the Table, when the Post Office Vote will be taken.

MR. A. J. BALFOUR

I am afraid I must give as unsatisfactory a reply to my hon. friend as I have given to an hon. Member opposite. I am not yet in a position to fix the date. I believe a certain interval has been promised before the debate is taken.

MR. FLYNN

Can the right hon. Gentleman explain how it is that this Report was in the hands of the newspapers last Friday, although it is not yet available for Members of this House?

LORD STANLEY

I think I can explain that. There was one advance copy in print, and I sent it down here to the Vote Office believing the House would order the printing of the Report at once. I find I ought to have sent it to the Stationery Office and have had it printed from there. Having discovered my mistake I have given instructions to the Stationery Office to print it as soon as possible and place it in the hands of hon. Members. I hope my right hon. friend will carry out the pledge that the discussion on this Vote shall not take place until the Report has been in the hands of hon. Members a fortnight.

MR. FLYNN

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that this practice of ignoring the claims of the House to see these Reports is growing more and more, and that hon. Members are thus ignored?

LORD STANLEY

In this case it is entirely my own fault. I sent it down here myself under the impression that I was doing something for the benefit of hon. Members.

SIR H. CAMPBELL-BANNERMAN (Stirling Burghs)

You sent this copy to the Vote Office, but how did the public Press get access to it?

LORD STANLEY

I am afraid that I am not responsible for what happens in the Vote Office. I sent it there, and I should have recalled it before anybody had seen it, had I known it was wrong to send it.

MR. GIBSON BOWLES

Do I understand that the copy which was sent to the Vote Office was the one which was sent to the representatives of the Press?

LORD STANLEY

That was the only copy that I know of that came down.

MR. SWIFT MACNEILL

How did it get to Printing-house-square?

MR. FORDE RIDLEY

Can the right hon. Gentleman give approximately the date when the discussion will be taken?

MR. A. J. BALFOUR

I should be very glad to satisfy my hon. friend if I could, but he will see that in the present state of public business I can give no pledge.

MR. T. W. RUSSELL (Tyrone, S.)

In view of the difficulty of preventing the Press getting these Reports, would it not be better to remove the restrictions altogether?

[No Answer was returned.]