NEW CLAUSE.—(Power of Local Authority to Acquire., etc., Existing ferries.) (Hansard, 27 November 1919)

§ Sir E. GEDDES
I beg to move, "That the Clause be read a second time."

§ Sir F. BANBURY
I should like to draw the attention of the House to the fact that this Clause is going to change the whole scope of the Bill. It will be a totally different Bill to that which obtained a Second Reading in this House. There is another 1984 and much more important point which I think the House ought to be acquainted with, especially the new Members. This is a private Member's Bill, brought in as such. As such it obtained the Second Reading, It went to Grand Committee and came to its Report stage as a private Member's Bill—that is to say, it wont through all its stages up to Report stage as a private Member's Bill. What happens then? The Government star it—that is to say, they make it a Government Bill. If the Government had not starred it it could not have been taken up, because the Government have all the time of the House, as is the custom when, we unfortunately are afflicted with an Autumn Session. Starring has been rarely resorted to during the years I have been in the House; only on very occasional circumstances and on very small matters. The reason is obvious. If the Government are going to star private Members' Bills at all frequently—and I think this is the third they have starred already this Autumn Session—what happens They get the whole advantage of the private Member's Bill which goes through without a majority of the House paying much attention to it, in all probability knowing little about it, and having thought that, as a private Member's Bill, it would never get any further. The Government are saved the trouble of taking any part in the Bill. They need not even condescend to come upstairs to the Grand Committee. Then, after all these stages have been gone through, they suddenly take it up as a Government Bill, and alter the whole scope and tenour of the Bill.
All the years I have been in the House there has been strong objection from all parts of the House—in the old days, when the House of Commons was the House of Commons—against the procedure of centuries not being carried out with due regard to the proper exercise of its functions by the House. This sort of thing was never tolerated. I venture to make this protest before it is too late. We have had some explanation, but many of us do not know very much about the Bill. Bills are hurried through. Even the Government do not know the proper course to pursue with these. I speak of what occurred to-day. If, on the top of all this, private Members' Bills are to be taken at the fag-end of the Sescsion and altered in this way, well, then, I say we are parting with a great many of the safeguards which existed in the old days, and the country will find 1985 to its cost that—well, I do not know quite what word to use—will find that it will be subjected to Bills which members have never had any opportunity of knowing about or speaking about. They probably will regret it when they find themselves suffering under these legislative enactments.

§ The CHAIRMAN
This Amendment and the two that follow in the name of the hon. and learned Gentleman are, I think, outside the scope of the Bill. The hon. Gentleman desires to make provision to provide ferries. I cannot accept that as within the scope of the Bill.

§ Sir E. HUME-WILLIAMS
The Clause as it stands not only gives power to acquire ferries, but to free them from all tolls. Does not this Amendment of mine approximately do the same thing? Will not the Bill cover the two identical things —in the one case to acquire a ferry and free it, and the other to start one? Is not that within the scope of the Bill?

§ The CHAIRMAN
I think not. Clause added to the Bill.