HC Deb 07 May 1923 vol 163 cc2114-5

1. A fishery board may by order confirmed by the Minister limit the number of licences to be issued in any year for fishing for salmon or trout in public waters within the fishery district with any instrument other than rod and line specified in the order, and provide for the selection of the applicants to whom licences shall be issued where the number of applications exceed the number of licences which may be granted:

Provided that— (b) if the number of licences as limited by the order is less than the number of licences issued in any one of the previous three years, and objection to the order is duly made by any person who has during each of the previous two years held any such licence, the Minister before confirming the order shall cause a public enquiry to be held in the locality by an officer of the Ministry.

Sir R. SANDERS

I beg to move, at end of Sub-section (1, b), to insert the words (c) The Minister shall not confirm an order unless he is satisfied that the terms of the order relating to the selection of licensees are such as to secure that any licensee, dependent upon fishing for his livelihood will be able to obtain a licence. This is a question that was raised on Second Reading. I was not at the time ready to agree that the fishermen had any particular grievance, but I must say that when the Bill came to the Committee the hon. Member for Pembroke (Major Lloyd George), with energy that I can only describe as hereditary, and other Members, convinced me that there was a substantial grievance, and I promised to introduce the necessary words. The object of this Bill is to try to make things better for the fishermen, and there was some disposition to believe that this might make it worse.

Mr. HINDS

The Amendment was to meet the objections raised by the coracle people. We felt that Clause 2 raised a great deal of objection among these people who had been earning their living by this means for many centuries. We should like to see the Clause limited but we feel easier because the Minister has done all he can to see that the rights of these people have been met.

Amendment agreed to.