BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE. (Hansard, 11 May 1916)

§ Mr. STUART-WORTLEY
Can the Prime Minister inform the House as to the course of business next week?

§ Mr. GINNELL
May I put a question of which I have given private notice?

§ Mr. SPEAKER
The question which the hon. Member has handed in is not one which can be put.

§ Mr. GINNELL
It relates to the life of a Member of this House.

§ Mr. SPEAKER
I have a copy of the hon. Member's question here. He asks whether the Home Office has licensed a gentleman to insult and threaten Members of this House. The Home Office has no power to licence anybody for any such purpose.

§ Mr. GINNELL
May I put the question if I omit the part to which you object?

§ Mr. SPEAKER
It is a question which cannot be put. If it had been handed in at the Table I should have rejected it, therefore it cannot be put now. The Prime Minister.

§ Mr. GINNELL
On a point of Order. Do you rule that I cannot put the part of the question that is in order?

§ Mr. SPEAKER
There is none of it in order.

§ Mr. GINNELL
Do you rule that members of the Travellers' Club are free to threaten and execute Members of this House? There is no martial law in this country.

§ Mr. SPEAKER
I do not rule that.

§ Mr. GINNELL
That is what your ruling amounts to.

§ Mr. SPEAKER
I rule that the Home Secretary has no power to licence them. The Prime Minister.

§ Mr. GINNELL
On a point of Order. Do you rule that the Home Secretary has not power to prevent blackguardism in Piccadilly?

§ Mr. SPEAKER
I have called on the Prime Minister.

§ The PRIME MINISTER
On Monday, we shall take the Report and I hope the Third Reading of the Military Service Bill.
On Tuesday, we shall give an opportunity for the discussion on the Air Service, on the Motion of the hon. Member for Brentford (Mr. Joynson-Hicks): ["That this House regrets that His Majesty's Government have not made adequate provision for a powerful Air Service, and urges that every possible step be taken to that end."]

§ Mr. SNOWDEN
I understood the Prime Minister to say that he hoped to take both the Report stage and the Third Reading of the Military Service Bill on Monday. That, of course, assumes that the Committee stage will be got through, to-day. The Prime Minister, I suppose, is aware of the fact that a considerable part of this Bill has been considered in. Committee after eleven o'clock at night, and if the Committee stage is to be finished to-day it means that the House will have to sit very late. [HON. MEMBERS: "Hear, hear!"] The "hear, hears" come from Members who do not sit late. [HON. MEMBERS: "Oh yes they do" and "You do not!"] The point I want to put is this: A great many very important parts of this Bill have been very inadequately considered. [HON. MEMBERS: "Oh!"!] We shall want a reasonable time for the further Committee stage of the Bill. According to the Rules of the House the Third Reading cannot be taken on the same day as the Report stage if the House does not agree. I think, therefore, I speak the-mind of hon. Members who act with me when I say that we shall not consent to take the Third Reading and the Report stage on the same day.

§ Mr. LOUGH
On that point, may I ask the Prime Minister whether he remembers that the House sat till four o'clock this morning, and that it sat very late the night before? [HON MEMBERS: "You were not here!"] I stayed as long as I could. It is, I think, almost contrary to the promise that my right hon. Friend gave, and—

§ Mr. SPEAKER
This is not a time for a speech. The right hon. Member had better ask a question, and not make a speech.

§ Mr. LOUGH
Certainly, Sir. May I ask the Prime Minister whether, in view of the recent late sittings, he will see his way to give a little further time to this most important Bill? [HON. MEMBERS: "No, no!"]

§ Mr. HOGGE
I am one of those who is always willing to stay here all the time we are discussing business, but I should like to know for the general convenience what the Prime Minister proposes to take to-morrow? I notice on the Order Paper that along with the public business there is also a Notice of Motion, "That this House do sit to-morrow." I have no objection to that, but I should like to know what we are going to do.

§ The PRIME MINISTER
I hope the Committee stage of the Military Service Bill will be completed to-night. My Motion is a precautionary one, so that, if it is not completed, we may be able to take it to-morrow. As regards the point raised by the hon. Gentleman (Mr. Snow-den), it is quite true that it is not customary to take the Report and the Third Reading of a Bill on the same day without something in the nature of general consent. I hope that consent may be given.

§ Mr. W. O'BRIEN
I would like to ask the Prime Minister whether he can yet name a day for the promised Debate on the state of Ireland? Perhaps he will kindly bear in mind that the entire discussion to-day will be confined to one particular point, which is naturally the most urgent. Will the right hon. Gentleman take care that the right of unfettered speech, which has already been given to the other House, is not denied to us in this House, so that the other side of the question may be heard?

§ The PRIME MINISTER
It is impossible to name a day.

§ Mr. JOYNSON-HICKS
I should like Mr. Speaker, to ask, for the guidance of the House, your ruling on the question or urgent oral questions. It largely arises out of certain questions put yesterday. I need hardly say that I do not for a moment intend to question or dispute your ruling, but it does seem to me that these questions have somewhat enlarged previous decisions. Under Standing Order No. 9 it is quite clear that no question may be put, or read to the House, without the permission of Mr. Speaker, 934 and no question can be read to the House except it is one of an urgent character. It has hitherto been a rule of the House that a question of an urgent character must be one of a very special character, under which injury would arise to someone if it were not immediately put. Many of us in these times have sometimes wished to ask questions that we considered of an urgent character, but we have refrained because we have felt that they were not within the terms of the Standing Order. What I desire to put to you in relation to these questions —which are in the "Official Report," and which appear on the face of them—some of them, at all events—to have enlarged considerably the interpretation of the term urgent—is whether, for the guidance of myself and other Members of this House, you can give some general ruling on the point?

§ Mr. SPEAKER
I do not think I can define the word "urgent" further than by saying that a question coming under that head would relate to such a matter as appeared to me under the circumstance of the case to be urgent. That is all the definition I can give. I must be guided very largely by the state of feeling in the House, and the circumstances of the country. I must direct my judgment accordingly. If the hon. Member inquires with reference to the questions asked yesterday by the hon. Member for East Mayo, I may say that I have looked at them again most carefully, and I certanly am of the opinion that out of the six questions put by the hon. Member five were urgent. If they had been submitted to me in writing I should certainly have allowed those five. I think there might have been some little doubt as to the question relating to Sir Roger Casement. It did not seem to me to be so strictly urgent. But the questions, I may add, were fired off with considerable rapidity, and I had not time to consider.