§
The following Amendment stood on the Order Paper in the name of Lieut.-Commander KENWORMY:
In page 37, line 4, after the first word "engines" to insert the words
or locomotives or motor vehicles used solely by travelling showmen in the pursuit of their calling.
§ Lieut.-Commander KENWORTHYIn view of the Amendment which the Minister of Transport has placed on the Paper, I do not propose to move this Amendment standing in the name of myself and several of my hon. Friends.
§ The MINISTER OF TRANSPORT (Colonel Ashley)I beg to move, in page 37, line 35, at the end, to insert the words
If any person proves to the satisfaction of the authority charged with levying the duty—It will be within the recollection of the House that on the late stage of the Bill the Chancellor of the Exchequer intimated that he would consider whether something could not be done to meet the case of the showmen raised by the hon. and gallant Gentleman the Member for Central Hull (Lieut.-Commander Kenworthy) and other hon. Members. To-night I do not propose to go into detail, but the concession in the Amendment amounts to this: that the showman must, first of all, have obtained and paid for his licence; secondly, during the currency of the licence the tractor must have been used solely for the purpose of his business; thirdly, and during the currency of the licence, he will be required to fulfil any of the Regulations that have been laid down by the Minister of Transport, and then he will be able to obtain a rebate equal to the extra amount paid under the Finance Act.he shall be entitled to repayment of an amount equal to the difference between the amount paid as duty under this subparagraph and the amount which would have been payable in respect of a licence for 764 that vehicle if this Act had tart passed, and the provisions of Sub-section (2) of Section fourteen of this Act shall apply as if he were entitled to a repayment in respect of an overpayment of duty.
- (a) that he has paid in respect of a licence for any vehicle the duty chargeable under this sub-paragraph; and
- (b) that the vehicle has during the currency of the licence been used by him solely for the purposes of his business as a travelling showman; and
- (c) that lie has during the currency of the licence complied, in relation to the vehicle, with any regulations which may be made by the Minister of Transport for the safeguarding of roads from the damage which might otherwise arise from the use of such vehicles,
What are these pronosed Regulations? Without tying ourselves to exact details, first of all, the tractor or locomotive must be fitted with rubber tyres. Already some 90 per cent. of tractors are so fitted as a result of communications which I have made to the Showmen's Guild 12 months ago. The effect is undoubtedly that these vehicles do very much less damage to the loads than if they were not fitted with rubber tyres. Another Regulation to which they must conform is as to the hours of the day or night that they may travel. When these heavy vehicles move about the roads on a summer's day they do very much 765 more damage to the roads, owing to the surface being soft, than they would do if they travelled by night or early in the morning. These are the lines upon which the Regulations are likely to be framed. By this Amendment we are doing two things: making a concession to a deserving class of people, and also ensuring that there shall be less damage to the roads.
§ Lieut.-Commander KENWORTHYOn behalf of my hon. Friends and myself, and a distinguished member of the Labour party. I desire to say that we are all very grateful to the right hon. Gentleman and the Chancellor for the concession. I have been very much in touch with the showmen. Not only are they grateful, but have authorised me to say that they are prepared to co-operate with the local authorities both as to the time they ought to travel and the roads they ought to take. Under four Governments I have taken considerable part in Budget discussions. This is the first time I have ever succeeded in getting any substantial Amendment accepted.
§ Amendment agreed to.
§ Mr. A. V. ALEXANDERI beg to move in page 37, line 40, at the end to insert the words
other than vehicles kept by a local authority and used in the performance of their duties relating to the removal of refuse and the cleansing, watering, and repairing of streets.This Amendment is moved in the hope that we may secure a rather larger concession than was given on the Committee stage to the vehicles of local authorities. I am assured that there is a considerable grievance among local authorities at the heavily-increased charges they have to bear, not only on vehicles used in their profit-making services, but those in the non-profit-making services. The Amendment asks for relief only in respect of those vehicles used for the health services, and I think it is reasonable to ask that there should not be a heavy increase in the charges on those vehicles. I have had a communication from the City of Sheffield which shows how severe will be the increased taxation in respect of these vehicles. The concession which the Chan- 766 cellor gave us will, in the case of Sheffield, give a relief of £1,800 a year, but the Corporation will still have to bear a net increase of £5,944. There will be a similar experience in the case of all other local authorities. They do not ask for any concession in respect of the taxation on vehicles used in the gas, electricity, or other profit-making departments. The vehicles for which the concession is asked are used very largely over roads for which no grant is received from the Road Fund, and, having regard to the fact that the Chancellor of the Exchequer is the real villain of the piece, as he is taking money out of the Road Fund, it is not asking too much to propose this concession.
§ Colonel ASHLEYThe House will realise that the Government cannot possibly accept this Amendment, as the very same Amendment, word for word, was rejected in Committee by an overwhelming majority. The real thing we have. to consider is the damage done to the roads, whether the owners of the vehicles be municipal authorities or private individuals makes no difference to the damage suffered by the roads. In this Finance Bill we have to find considerably increased sums for road purposes. We have provided largely increased sums for rural roads, and unless we have this extra revenue corning into the coffers of the Exchequer, it will be impossible for us to find the money to meet these new grants. The Amendment next on the paper in my name reduces the proposed rate of duty on electrically-propelled vehicles by 50 per cent., and will sensibly relieve the local authorities, who use some 2,500 of them, and to that extent we are meeting their legitimate claims.
§ Mr. BASIL PETOI have no animosity against showmen and those who provide amusement for the public, but I view with regret the concession made by the Chancellor to their engines, when he will give no relief for engines used exclusively for hauling home-grown timber on the roads.
§ Mr. SPEAKERThis Amendment has nothing to do with shows or home-grown timber.
§ Question put, "That those words be there inserted in the Bill"
§ The House divided: Ayes, 94; Noes, 178.
769§ Colonel ASHLEYI beg to move, in page 37, line 42, to leave out the words "and which do not exceed," and to insert instead thereof the words " not exceeding."
This is the first of a series of Amendments which axe designed to carry out, and do carry out, the concession to electrically-propelled vehicles which I indicated during the Committee stage, namely, that the increased charge will be 50 per cent, instead of the whole WO per cent.
§ Amendment agreed to.
§ Further Amendments made: In page 37, line 43, at the end, insert
| £ | |
| "Exceeding 25 cwt. but not exceeding 2 tons in weight unladen | 13 |
| Exceeding 2 tons but not exceeding 3 tons in weight unladen | 20 |
| Exceeding 3 tons but not exceeding 4 tons in weight unladen | 24 |
| Exceeding 4 tons but not exceeding 5 tons in weight unladen | 27 |
| Exceeding 5 tons in weight unladen | 30 |
| With an additional duty, in any case, if used for drawing a trailer, of | 6" |
§ In page 38, line 3, leave out the word "such."
| Division No. 380.] | AYES. | [11.40 p.m. |
| Acland-Troyte, Lieut.-Colonel | Brown, Col. D. C. (N'th'l'd., Hexham) | Davidson, J.(Hertf'd, Hemel Hempst'd) |
| Albery, Irving James | Buckingham, Sir H. | Davidson, Major-General Sir John H. |
| Alexander, sir Wm. (Glasgow, Cent'l) | Bull, Rt. Hon. Sir William James | Dawson. Sir Philip |
| Allen, J. Sandeman (L'pool, W. Derby) | Burton, Colonel H. W. | Edmondson, Major A. J. |
| Amery, Rt. Hon. Leopold C. M. S. | Cayzer, Maj. Sir Herbt. R. (Prtsmth.S.) | England, Colonel A. |
| Applin, Colonel R. V. K. | Cecil, Rt. Hon. Sir Evelyn (Alton) | Erskine. Lord (Somerset, Weston-s.-M.) |
| Ashley, Lt.-Col. Rt. Hon. Wilfrid W. | Charteris, Brigadier-General J. | Everard, W. Lindsay |
| Balfour, George (Hampstead) | Christie, J. A. | Falle, sir Bertram G. |
| Balniel, Lord | Churchill, Rt. Hon. Winston Spencer | Fielden, E. B. |
| Barclay-Harvey, C. M. | Cobb, Sir Cyril | Ford, Sir P. J. |
| Bird, Sir R. B. (Wolverhampton, W.) | Cochrane, Commander Hon. A. D. | Forrest, W. |
| Blundell, F. N. | Colfox, Major Wm. Phillips | Fraser, Captain Ian |
| Boothby, R. J. G. | Cope, Major William | Fremantle, Lieut.-Colonel Francis E. |
| Bourne, Captain Robert Croft | Couper, J. B. | Gadie, Lieut.-Col. Anthony |
| Bowyer, Capt. G. E. W. | Courthope, Lieut.-Col. Sir George L. | Ganzonl, Sir John |
| Brass, Captain W. | Crooke, J. Smedley (Derltend) | Gates, Percy |
| Bridgeman. Rt. Hon. William cllve | Crookshank. Col. C. de W. (Berwick) | Gibbs, Cot. Rt. Hon. George Abraham |
| Briscoe, Richard Qeorge | Cunliffe, Sir Herbert | Gilmour, Lt.-Col. Rt. Hon. Sir John |
| Brocklebank, C. E. R. | Curzon, Captain Viscount | Goff Sir Park |
| Brooke, Brigadier-General C. R. I. | Dalkeith, Earl of | Grant, Sir J. A. |
§ In line 4, leave out the words "as aforesaid."—[Colonel Ashley.]
§ Major CRAWFURDI beg to move, in page 38, line 5, to leave out "12 cwt.," and to insert instead thereof "15 cwt."
In moving this Amendment, I do not propose to repeat the arguments I used at a previous stage of the Bill, but I want to say in two sentences, first of all, that the purpose of the Amendment is to increase the weight of the light commercial vehicle which should pay the lowest rate of tax; and, in the second place, that the Amendment, if accepted, will, I believer not diminish the revenue, but help the retail tradesman, and give a great stimulus to the motor trade in a branch where at present it may be a little lacking.
§ Colonel ASHLEYI can hardly find it in my heart to refuse the Amendment, because apparently the motoring millenium will come at once if it is passed, but I am afraid I must. It will cost £60,000 pet' annum, and that we cannot afford.
§ Question put, "That '12 cwt.' stand part of the Bill."
§ The House divided: Ayes, 174; Noes, 66.
| Greene, W. P. Crawford | Marriott, Sir J. A. R. | Stanley, Lord (Fylde) |
| Gunston, Captain D. W. | Mason. Lieut.-Col. Glyn K. | Stanley, Col. Hon. G. F. (Will'sden, E) |
| Hanbury, C. | Merriman, F. B. | Stanley, Hon. O. F. G. (Westm'eland) |
| Hannon, Patrick Joseph Henry | Milne, J. S. Wardlaw- | Steel, Major Samuel Strang |
| Harland. A. | Moore-Brabazon, Lieut.-Col. J. T. C. | Storry-Deans, R. |
| Harrison, G. J. C. | Morden, Cot, W. Grant | Stott, Lieut.-Colonel W. H. |
| Haslam, Henry C. | Moreing, Captain A. H. | Stuart, Hon. J. (Moray and Nairn) |
| Hawke, John Anthony | Morrison Bell, Sir Arthur Clive | Stuart, Crichton-, Lord C. |
| Henderson, Capt. R. R. (Oxf'd, Henley) | Neville, R. J. | Styles, Captain H. Walter |
| Henderson, Lieut.-Col. V. L. (Bootle) | Newman, Sir R. H. S. D. L. (Exeter) | Sugden, Sir Wilfrid |
| Heneage, Lieut.-Col. Arthur P. | Nicholson, O. (Westminster) | Sykes, Major-Gen. Sir Frederick H. |
| Henn, Sir Sydney H. | Nuttall, Ellis | Templeton, W. P. |
| Hennessy, Major J. R. G. | O'Neill. Major Rt. Hon. Hugh | Thom, Lt.-Col. J. G. (Dumbarton) |
| Hilton, Cecil | Perkins, Colonel E. K. | Thomson, F. C. (Aberdeen South) |
| Hogg, Rt. Hon.Sir D.(St.Marylebone) | Peto, Basil E. (Devon, Barnstaple) | Thomson, Rt. Hon. Sir W. Mitchell- |
| Hope, Capt. A. O. J. (Warw'k, Nun.) | Peto, G. (Somerset, Frome) | Tryon, Rt. Hon. George Clement |
| Hopkins, J. W. W. | Preston, William | Vaughan-Morgan, Col. K. P. |
| Howard, Captain Hon. Donald | Price, Major C. W. M. | Waddington, R. |
| Hudson, Capt. A. U. M.(Hackney, N.) | Raine, W. | Warner, Brigadier-General W. W. |
| Huntingfield, Lord . | Ramsden, E. | Watson, Sir F. (Pudsey and Otley) |
| Hurd, Percy A. | Rees, Sir Beddoe | Watson, Rt. Hon. W. (Carlisle) |
| Inskip, Sir Thomas Walker H. | Reid, Capt. A. S. C. (Warrington) | Watts, Dr. T. |
| Jacob, A. E. | Remer, J. R. | Wells, S. R. |
| Jephcott, A. R. | Rhys, Hon. C. A. U. | Wheler, Major Sir Granville C. H. |
| Kennedy, A. R. (Preston) | Ropner, Major L. | White, Lieut. Col. Sir G. Dairymple |
| King, Captain Henry Douglas | Ruggles-Brise, Major E. A. | Williams, A. M. (Cornwall, Northern) |
| Lamb, J. Q. | Russell, Alexander West (Tynemouth) | Wilson, R. R. (Stafford, Lichfield) |
| Lane Fox, Col. Rt. Hon. George R. | Salmon, Major I. | Windsor-Clive, Lieut.-Colonel George |
| Lister, Cunliffe-, Rt. Hon. Sir Philip | Samuel, A. M. (Surrey, Farnham) | Wise, Sir Fredric |
| Little, Dr. E. Graham | Samuel. Samuel (W'dsworth, Putney) | Wormersely, W. J. |
| Loder, J. de V. | Sandeman, A. Stewart | Wood, E. (Chest'r, Stalyb'dge & Hyde) |
| Lucas-Tooth, Sir Hugh Vere | Sanders, Sir Robert A. | Wood, Sir S. Hill- (High Peak) |
| MacAndrew, Major Charles Glen | Sanderson, Sir Frank | Wragg, Herbert |
| Macdonald, Sir Murdoch (Inverness) | Shaw, R. G. (Yorks, W.R., Sowerby) | Yerburgh, Major Robert D. T. |
| Macdonald, Capt. P. D, (I. of W.) | Shaw, Capt. Walter (Wilts, Westb'y) | Young, Rt. Hon. Hilton (Norwich) |
| Macmillan, Captain H. | Simms, Dr. John M. (Co. Down) | |
| McNeill, Rt. Hon. Ronald John | Slaney, Major P. Kenyon | TELLERS FOR THE AYES.— |
| MacRobert, Alexander M. | Smith, R. W. (Aberd'n & Kinc'dins,C.) | Sir Harry Barnston and Captain |
| Maitland, Sir Arthur D. Steel- | Spender-Clay, Colonel H. | Margesson. |
| Makins, Brigadier-General E. |
| NOES. | ||
| Adamson. Rt. Hon. W. (Fife, West) | Hardie, George D. | Saklatvala, Shapurji |
| Amnion, Charles George | Hartshorn. Rt. Hon. Vernon | Scurr. John |
| Barnes. A. | Hayday, Arthur | Shiels, Dr. Drummond |
| Barr. J. | Hayes, John Henry | Short, Alfred (Wednesbury) |
| Bowerman, Rt. Hon. Charles W. | Hirst, G. H. | Sitch, Charles H. |
| Briant, Frank | Hirst, W. (Bradford, South) | Slesser, Sir Henry H. |
| Brown, James (Ayr and Bute) | Hudson, J. H. (Huddersfield) | Smith, Ben (Bermondsey, Rotherhithe) |
| Buchanan, G. | Jenkins, W. (Glamorgan, Neath) | Smith, H. B. Lees- (Keighley) |
| Charleton, H. C. | John, William (Rhondda, West) | Spencer, George A. (Broxtowe) |
| Collins, Sir Godfrey (Greenock) | Jones, Morgan (Caerphilly) | Stephen, Campbell |
| Compton, Joseph | Kelly, W. T. | Sullivan, J |
| Dalton, Hugh | Kennedy, T. | Sutton, J. E. |
| Day, Colonel Harry | Lawrence, Susan | Tinker, John Joseph |
| Dunnico, H. | Lindley. F. W. | Townend, A. E. |
| Edwards, C. (Monmouth, Bedwellty) | MacLaren, Andrew | Varley, Frank B. |
| Garro-Jones, Captain G. M. | Maclean, Neil (Glasgow, Govan) | Watson, W. M. (Dunfermline) |
| Gillett, George M. | Naylor, T. E. | Watts-Morgan, Lt.-Col. D. (Rhondda) |
| Gosling, Harry | Oliver, George Harold | Welsh, J. C. |
| Graham, D. M. (Lanark, Hamilton) | Paling, W. | Williams. T. (York. Don Valley) |
| Greenwood, A. (Nelson and Colne) | Parkinson, John Allen (Wigan) | Young, Robert (Lancaster, Newton) |
| Grenfell, D. R. (Glamorgan) | Pethick-Lawrence, F. W. | |
| Guest, Haden (Southwark, N.) | Potts, John S. | TELLERS FOR THE NOES.— |
| Hall, G. H. (Merthyr Tydvil) | Riley, Ben | Mr. Crawfurd and Lieut.-Com |
| mander Kenworthy. |
§ Colonel ASHLEYI beg to move, in page 38, line 18, to leave out "£10" and to insert instead thereof "£6."
§ This Amendment makes the tax on trailers instead of £10.
§ Amendment agreed to.
§ Bill to be read the Third time to-morrow.