HC Deb 20 March 1931 vol 249 cc2309-11

(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Ground Game Act, 1880, it shall be lawful for the landholders interested in a common grazing or in a part of a common grazing which has been apportioned under sub-section (5) of section twenty-four of the Act of 1911—

  1. (i) to appoint not more than two of their number; and
  2. (ii) to authorise in writing one person bona fide employed by them for reward; to kill and take ground game on the common grazing or the part thereof, as the case may be.

(2) For the purposes of the Ground Game Act, 1880, any person appointed in pursuance of the foregoing sub-section shall be deemed to be the occupier of the common grazing or the part thereof, as the case may be, provided that he shall not have the right to authorise any other person to kill and take ground game, and any person authorised in pursuance of the foregoing subsection shall be deemed to have been authorised by the occupier of the common grazing or the part thereof, as the case may be, to kill and take ground game with firearms or otherwise.—[The Lord Advocate.

Brought up, and read the First time.

The LORD ADVOCATE

I beg to move, "That the Clause be read a Second time."

This is a matter upon which there was agreement in Committee and I do not propose to say anything about it. I see that hon. Members opposite desire in Sub-section (2) to insert after the word "purposes" the words "and subject to the conditions of." I hope they will not press that Amendment because it is quite unnecessary. The new Clause is quite clear and the insertion of the proposed words would only lead to confusion.

Sir F. C. THOMSON

My hon. Friends and I put down the Amendment to which the Lord Advocate has referred in order that the matter might be made quite clear. We thought that the Section of the Ground Game Act which deals with the use of poisons might apply in this case but after the assurance given by the Lord Advocate we do not propose to move the Amendment.

Mr. MACPHERSON

I desire to support the new Clause. I must remind the Under-Secretary of State that this is only part of the agreement which was reached in Committee. He promised a conference with the Committee which the Secretary of State has instituted to consider the whole question of ground game.

Mr. JOHNSTON

I do not want there to be any misunderstanding on this point. What I said was that the questions considered by the Committee which had been appointed would require fresh legislation and could not be inserted in this Bill.

Mr. MACPHERSON

That is exactly my point. We accepted this in Committee as being part of the general programme, and I should like it to be on record that the Government promised us that they would consider new and fresh legislation dealing with the other points that were raised.

Clause added to the Bill.