§ (1) If the council of any borough or urban district having a population of not less than fifty thousand pass a resolution to become the local supervising authority over midwives within the area of their borough or district, then, upon the expiration of one month from the passing of such resolution, the council passing the same shall 553 become, and the county council shall cease to be, the local supervising authority in such borough or district.
§ (2) Any act done or proceeding taken by the county council prior to the date when such resolution comes into operation shall, after such date, have effect as if done or taken by the council of such borough or district.
§ (3) Any expenses under the principal Act or this Act payable by the council of a borough or district so becoming the local authority, including the expenses of any prosecution by such council, shall be defrayed out of the borough fund or borough rate or the district fund or general district rate, as the case may be, and such borough or urban district shall cease to contribute to the county fund in respect of any expenses of the county council under the principal Act or this Act incurred after the council of such borough or district becomes the local supervising authority.—[Mr. Booth.]
§ Brought up, and read the first time.
§ Mr. BOOTHI beg to move, "That the Clause be read a second time."
I want formally to move this Amendment because it is one in which I firmly believe. Judging by the result of the Division on my last proposal I expect the right hon. Gentleman cannot see his way to go so far as this Clause proposes. At the same time I hope he will be able to offer some word of encouragement to these smaller boroughs and larger urban districts with regard to these matters. I ask him not to be too much guided by the last vote which was taken, because I heard Members calling out, "This way for the Midwives Bill."
§ The DEPUTY-CHAIRMAN (Sir Donald Maclean)That is not in order.
§ Mr. BOOTHThat decision did not at all cover my Clause. It is quite obvious, when that argument was used, that Members had not in mind any such point as that in my Clause. The time has come when this House should make up its mind with regard to the local bodies. I have warned the House again and again against legislating in advance of public opinion, but the House keeps doing it and is doing so now. Previous efforts have failed, because there has been no educative work pari passu with legislative work. Unless the localities can be brought into better line and unless a better spirit can be promoted amongst local people, none of these measures will succeed. The President of the Local Government Board recognises that to a large extent, as was shown by his attitude on the Maternity and Child Welfare Bill. It is a totally fallacious notion which is cherished by people at headquarters, that it is only by central administration in 554 London that you can accomplish anything in the country. It may be argued against my Clause that it will not lead to uniformity. I do not want Prussian uniformity throughout the country. I want one district to emulate another. I believe certain districts which are more go ahead and more enlightened than others have their influence upon their neighbours, and that it is in that way that the good cause spreads, and that a great advance is made rather than by passing Acts of Parliament and having them administered entirely from Whitehall. If you get these large urban districts and small boroughs putting these Acts into operation one after another, you will get a large advance, but if you snub them, if you neglect them, if you keep saying in this House that they are not to be trusted, as though they were enemies in some way of the public weal, you will dishearten the best administrators and weaken the prestige of the public authorities and that will not make for public progress. I make that appeal with all earnestness, but after the last Debate I ask the House to excuse me discussing the matter further.
Mr. FISHERThe House has just come to the conclusion, without the aid of any Government Whips, that under no circumstances should a county council be allowed to delegate its powers of supervising mid-wives to any other body. My hon. Friend now moves an Amendment by which any district council with a population of more than 50,000, simply by passing a resolution, shall be able to take away from the county council the powers which it possesses of supervising mid wives, whether the county council desires to part with those powers or not. That is a proposal to which I could not give the slightest possible adhesion. In all my arguments I have said that the initiative must rest with the county council, and that the county council must itself be the judge whether or not it ought to part with those powers. There would be nothing in a resolution of a district council which desired to have these powers to show that it would be able to carry them out with any degree of excellence. Therefore, there is really no argument for this particular Clause, although there was a very substantial argument for a county council on its own initiative delegating its powers to another body.
§ Question put, and negatived.
555§ Schedule (Provisions of principal Act repealed) agreed to.
§ Bill reported; as amended, considered; read the third time, and passed.