§ A local authority or a county council may, notwithstanding anything in Section three hundred and twenty-seven or Section three hundred and thirty-two of the Public Health Act, 1875, be authorised to abstract water from any river, stream, or lake, or the feeders thereof, whether within or without the district of the local authority or the county, for the purpose of affording a water supply for houses provided or to be provided under a scheme made under the Housing Acts, and to do all such acts as may be necessary for affording a water supply to such houses, in like manner as they may be authorised to acquire land for the purposes of the scheme.
§ Provided that no local authority or county council shall be authorised under this Section to abstract any water which any local authority, corporation, company, or person are empowered by Act of Parliament to impound, take or use for the purpose of supply within any area, or any water the abstraction of which would, in the opinion of the Local Government Board, injuriously affect the working or management of any canal or inland navigation.
§ Mr. RAWLINSONI beg to move, after "1875." to insert the words, 968
but subject to the provisions of Section 52 of that Act.This is an Amendment to safeguard the water companies. By Section 52 of the Public Health Act, 1875, provision is made for the protection of existing water companies. If any person wants to supply water in the area, before he can do so he must give a chance to the existing water company to quote a rate. In case a rate is agreed, there is an end of the matter. If it is not agreed, it is referred to the arbitration of a Government Department. This is a protection which it is only reasonable the water company should have. There is some doubt as to whether this Amendment is necessary, but the companies are in favour of this protection being given, and I trust that the Government will consent to those words being inserted to prevent the ambiguity which, the water companies have been advised by counsel, exists.
§ Sir T. BRAMSDONI beg to second the Amendment.
§ Major ASTORI am quite prepared to accept this Amendment. Amendment agreed to.
§ Major LANE-FOXI beg to move, to leave out the words
provided or to be provided under a scheme made under the Housing Act,and to insert instead thereof the wordswhich are not provided with a sufficient supply of water.The point is simple. Clause 14 gives power to the local authority or to the county council to supply water from any river, stream, etc., for the purpose of affording water supply for houses under this Act. There are many cases, especially in rural districts, where the few houses required to be supplied by the local authorities will be alongside existing and scattered houses, and it does seem that when the opportunity arises the duty should be placed on the authority to provide proper water supply for the houses, alongside. As the Bill stands, there is no provision for including other houses. That, of course, opens the question as to how far the water supply will be sufficient for existing purposes, and we are trying to safeguard that by a consequential Amendment later on:Provided that nothing done here under shall prejudicially affect the supply of such water to existing houses and agricultural holdings.There is no doubt that in agricultural districts the water supply is thoroughly in- 969 adequate now and than considerable improvement is required. It is a mistake to do the thing piecemeal. When we are imposing on authorities the duty of supplying water to houses built under this scheme we ought to have an opportunity of dealing with the inadequate supply to houses already existing.
§ Major LLOYD-GREAMEI beg to second the Amendment.
§ 10.0P.M.
§ Major ASTORIt would be convenient if I explained the Government view on this Amendment and the other Amendments, because they are all more or less interlocked. I cannot accept the Amendment we are now discussing, but I can take a part of the other Amendments in the name of the same hon. Members as an addition to one of the others on the Paper. The House will know that anything dealing with water, the acquisition compulsorily of water rights, is apt to raise very difficult questions. Since this Bill was introduced we have been quite prepared to add any safeguard protecting existing owners of water rights. In our opinion we have made the position quite clear. If this Amendment were accepted it would really be not an adaptation of the existing law to meet the needs of the new houses, but we should really be amending drastically the law as it relates to water and the supply of water to houses—a very desirable thing. I am entirely in sympathy with the object of the Mover, but in our opinion we ought not to deal with it here in this Bill. It is a big Bill and is already carrying a considerable amount. We were not by any means certain that Clause 14, as introduced, would be accepted by the House. We are very grateful for its acceptance, but we do not want to overload our proposal, as we should undoubtedly do if we accepted this Amendment. I am prepared and authorised to accept the next Amendment on the Paper, if it is slightly modified.
§ Major LANE-FOXI am much obliged to the hon. Member for going as far as he has gone, and I beg leave to withdraw the Amendment.
§ Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.
Mr. LOCKER-LAMPSONI beg to move, after the word "houses" ["to such houses in like manner"], to insert the words
or houses that may be deprived of sufficient water supply by reason of such abstraction.970 I do not know the exact form of alteration which the Government are prepared to accept.
§ Major ASTORThe words that the Government are prepared to accept are as follows: After the word "houses" ["to such houses in like manner"], insert the words
and to any houses or agricultural holdings that may be deprived of sufficient water supply by reason of such abstraction.The quickest way of dealing with this would be for the hon. Member to withdraw his Amendment, and let mo move the modification I have referred to.
§ Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.
§
Amendment made: After the word "houses" ["to such houses in like manner"] insert the words
and to any houses or agricultural holdings that may be deprived of sufficient water supply by reason of such abstraction."—[Major Astor.]
§ Mr. RAWLINSONI beg to move, after the word "manner" ["houses, in like manner "], to insert the words
and subject to the like restriction.The Government accepted this proposal a short time ago.
§ Major ASTORI am prepared to accept the Amendment.
§ Amendment agreed to.
§ Mr. LORDENAfter the acceptance of the previous Amendment I am in difficulty about one standing in my name, which is, after the word "scheme" ["for the purposes of the scheme"], to insert the words
provided that a local authority or county council shall provide a sufficient supply of water to any existing houses or premises that may be adversely affected by such abstraction.It is a little stronger, and it seems to me that you want something of that kind, because if a county council or local authority which has a housing scheme, taps all the water in a neighbourhood it may take away the water from a few cottages and farms already existing, and may make those cottages insanitary so that they have to be condemned by the local authority. Under the circumstances I think a better plan would be for me not to move this Amendment, for a largo portion of the ground covered by it is provided for in the previous Amendment.
§ Dr. ADDISONAs we have made good progress, and in consequence of a desire to have a certain discussion on the Ad- 971 journment, and in order to take the Lords Amendments to the Ministry of Health Bill, I beg to move,
That further consideration of the Bill, as amended (in the Standing Committee), be now adjourned.
§ Sir C. WARNERThere is an Amendment to this Clause providing that nothing done here under shall prejudice a fair supply of water to such houses, and which I understood was accepted by the Government.
§ Mr. SPEAKERI understood that that was consequential to an Amendment which was withdrawn.
§ Major ASTORThe Amendment suggested is really unnecessary, because of an Amendment with the words "and any house or agricultural holding that may be deprived."
§ Question put, and agreed to.
§ Bill, as amended (in the Standing Committee), to be further considered Tomorrow.