§ Mr. HAZLETONAs suggested by the Prime Minister this day week, I desire to ask you, Mr. Speaker, if you are yet in a position to make any statement to the House in regard to the opening of the Strangers' Galleries?
§ Mr. SPEAKERThis House will remember that the Select Committee on the admission of strangers reported in paragraph 5 that it was advisable that the Galleries should remain closed until the passage of an Act the object of which was to punish by summary methods any disturbance which took place in the House. They will also remember that a Bill for that purpose which was introduced was discussed a fortnight ago. Any hon. Member who was present during the discussion of that Bill will, I think, feel that it had but little chance of passing into law. Therefore I presumed that in order to solve the situation in which we found ourselves my powers would have to be brought in. The House will remember that it is now more than six months ago since the Galleries were cleared, and that during at least five months of that time the House has been in Session so far as the public is concerned with closed doors. It appears to me that, however inconvenient this may be for Members, yet we must not consider our own convenience, and that the time has now come when the Galleries should be opened to the members of the public. I propose, therefore, that this day week the Galleries should be opened under the conditions which are laid down in paragraphs 4, 6, 8, 10, 11, and 12 of the Report of the Select Committee. But I should not be justified in adopting paragraph 15 of the Report of the Committee, which suggests that in the Members' Gallery there should be places assigned to ladies, without having previously taken the view of the House on that matter. It seems to me so great an innovation on our practice that I cannot take upon myself to carry out that suggestion. As to the other 743 suggestions which are made by the Select Committee, and which are of a minor character, I think they ought at once to be put into effect. Perhaps the House will allow me to remind them what the suggestions of the Committee were. First of all, with regard to the Members' Gallery, orders will be issued in advance in the same way as usual, the only difference being that they will be issued by the Sergeant-at-Arms instead of being issued from the Speaker's Secretary's office, and that the book in which Members will inscribe their names a week in advance will be placed in future in the "No" Division Lobby, instead of in the Speaker's Secretary's office, as being more convenient. Then, with regard to applications during the sitting of the House, I propose to follow out the recommendation of the Committee. An admission order office has been established in St. Stephen's Hall, and Members will be saved the trouble of leaving their seats in order to go and seek admission orders for their friends. Those who desire admission can go straight to the admission office and receive orders admitting them to the House, provided there be room, and, of course, if there be no room, they will have to wait after their arrival until there is room for them to come in. With regard to the special Gallery and under the Gallery practically the same arrangements will obtain as heretofore: that is to say, application may be made beforehand by Members, and during the sitting of the House the application may also be made by Members to the Sergeant-at-Arms for the admission of their friends. The Ambassadors' and Distinguished Strangers' Gallery will remain as before under my immediate supervision. With regard to Ladies' Gallery, which was the centre of disturbance on the last occasion, I propose experimentally to open the Ladies' Gallery to relatives of Members. A ballot will take place as usual, and any Member who is successful will receive two tickets of admission, but I hope that Members will limit the recipients of those tickets strictly to Members of their own families and relations. No supplementary orders for admission to the Ladies' Gallery will be issued during the sitting of the House. I must also add that the condition suggested by the Select Committee will be strictly carried out, namely, that upon every ticket issued there will be inscribed a copy of the con- 744 ditions under which that ticket is issued, and every stranger coming into the House will be asked to subscribe a declaration that he or she will abide by the rules of order, and will undertake not to create a disturbance. I may say that for the convenience of Members I propose to circulate with the Votes to-morrow a copy of the new regulations. In my judgment, these are very reasonable conditions and regulations, and ought to prevent any future disturbance arising in the Galleries; and I would most earnestly invite Members to assist me in carrying out these regulations. Of course if any serious concerted disturbance were again to arise, which I do not anticipate, our only method of dealing with it would be as before, namely, to clear the Galleries; and in this event they would probably remain cleared for a longer time than they have now been cleared.
§ Mr. WILLIAM REDMONDMight I ask Mr. Speaker one question on this matter? Are we to understand that when a member of the public comes and asks for admission to the Gallery it is merely necessary that he should give a Member's name? Is that Member to be notified? Is his assent to the application to be required, or can the public get in simply by giving a Member's name without having notice given to the Member?
§ Mr. SPEAKERAs I understand the Report of the Select Committee it will not be necessary to give notice to the Member. Therefore the Member will not be disturbed, but will be able to continue in attendance, in the library, or at whatever business he may be engaged, without disturbance.
§ Mr. WILLIAM REDMONDIf the Member is not notified of the application of the stranger for a place in the Gallery might I ask whether it is not fair to assume that in those circumstances the Member will be entirely free from any responsibility?
§ Mr. SPEAKERThe hon. Member was himself on the Committee, and can form a better opinion than I can, but I understand that that was the object of the Committee in making that recommendation: that it was found impossible to fix responsibility on hon. Members for those whom they may introduce, and therefore the Committee thought it far better to relieve hon. Members of that responsibility altogether, and place it upon the shoulders of the strangers who came in.
§ Mr. BYLESIs the House to understand that admission to the Ladies' Gallery will not be transferable? It has been the custom very often for ladies to receive tickets for the Gallery and use them perhaps for a very short time, and then give them to friends for the rest of the evening. Very few ladies remain the whole night through, and the Ladies' Gallery will be vacant after a short time.
§ Mr. SPEAKERThe seats will not be transferable.
§ Mr. CHIOZZA MONEYIf the fact that a member of the public has applied through the name of a Member be taken as a guarantee, though a slight one, of the respectability of the person applying, what guarantee or protection will it be with regard to the introduction of undesirable persons under the new arrangement?
§ Mr. THEODORE TAYLORIt seems to me that a Member of the public could come in and give the name of the Prime Minister every time.
§ Mr. SPEAKERI think that the hon. Member for Paddington is in error in thinking that any degree of responsibility can be made to attach to the Member whose name is used. The matter was threshed out in Committee, and I think—I am only speaking from what I have gathered—that the meaning of the report is that the Committee came to the conclusion that it was impossible to fix on any Member the responsibility for the stranger who was introduced, and therefore they solved the question in the way I have stated.
§ Mr. AUSTEN CHAMBERLAINWill there be any limitation of the nationality of the strangers who are introduced? Will the privilege be confined to citizens of this country, or will it be open to a man of any nationality to come in and get in in that way?
§ Mr. SPEAKERA man of any nationality who understands English, who understands the promise made and subscribed, would be admissible.
Mr. STANLEY WILSONIn the event of there being room in the Ladies' Gallery during the sittings of the House will Members be allowed to introduce ladies?
§ Mr. SPEAKERNo; no supplemental orders will be issued.
§ Mr. WILLIAM REDMONDIn view of the fact that a Member is not to be notified 746 that his name is being given, and that therefore no responsibility attaches to him, would it not be better to do away with the rule that the name should be given at all, and that in that way the public could come in here as in the case of other Legislatures?
§ Mr. SPEAKERI simply adopt the recommendation of the Committee.