§ MR. KEIR HARDIE (Merthyr Tydvil)I beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is aware that orders made under the Shop Hours Act, 1904, are frequently violated and are allowed to go unpunished owing to the difficulty of ascertaining the prosecuting authority; whether the Standing Joint Committee of the Glamorgan County Council refuses to allow the police to take action in such cases in Merthyr; and whether any means can be taken in the way of instructing the police or otherwise to have the provisions of the Act more rigidly carried into effect.
§ * MR. GLADSTONENo representations have been made to me to this effect, nor have I received any relating to the enforcement of the closing order made by the Merthyr Tydvil Town Council. No special duty with regard to enforcing such orders is laid upon the police by the Shop Hours Acts. On the contrary, power is given to the authority which makes the order to appoint inspectors and those inspectors are invested with special powers of entry for the purpose, such as are not possessed by the police. It is also open to any person aggrieved to institute proceedings.