HC Deb 07 November 1934 vol 293 cc1184-5

Amendments made In page 24, line 21, leave out "apply to Scotland," and insert "in its application to Scotland have effect."

In line 23, after "reference," insert "in section four of this Act."

In line 33, leave out "this Act," and insert "the said section four."

In page 25, line 2, at the end, insert: (3) Sub-section (2) of section five shall have effect as if for the councils and authorities (other than the licensing authority) therein mentioned the following councils and authorities were substituted, that is to say:—

  1. (a) the council of the county or burgh within which the track or any part thereof is situate; and
  2. (b) the responsible authority under a planning scheme in force in any area which includes the track or any part thereof;
where such council or responsible authority is not the licensing authority.

In line 25, after "any," insert "school or."—[The Lord Advocate.]

11.30 p.m.

The LORD ADVOCATE

I beg to move, in page 26, line 9, to leave out Subsection (8).

This Amendment is preliminary to an Amendment which my right hon. Friend has put down to the First Schedule, setting forth the names of the bodies whose members will be qualified to act as accountants under this Part of the Bill. As the names will then be included in the Schedule, it will not be necessary to include them in the Clause.

Amendment agreed to.

Motion made, and Question proposed, "That the Clause, as amended, stand part of the Bill."

11.32 p.m.

Mr. BUCHANAN

Before this Clause is passed, I want to ask the Lord Advocate if his mind is definitely made up on the question of the sheriff exercising the power conferred by Clause 25 on a justice of the peace. In Scotland, where a search warrant is procured, it is generally a sheriff's warrant, and never that of a justice of the peace. I want to ask the Lord Advocate if it has been decided that the law shall be continued as it was before, so that nobody but a sheriff shall be able to grant a search warrant. Further, do I understand from the Clause that all offences under the previous Clause will be triable by the sheriff, and that none of them will be triable by what is called in Scotland a local magistrate? If that be the case, in view of the probable increase in the number of offences to be tried, I want to ask the Lord Advocate if he has given any consideration to the question of the number of sheriffdoms in Scotland?

11.34 p.m.

The LORD ADVOCATE

With regard to the first point, the law is that all these prosecutions will take place before the Sheriff, and none before a local magistrate. That is the result of a series of decisions which put it beyond all doubt that, since there is no jurisdiction conferred upon the burgh magistrates, the only court in which such cases can be tried will be the sheriff's court. As regards the grant of search warrants, I think that under existing legislation a search warrant may be granted either by a magistrate or by the sheriff, but I will look into the matter before the Report stage.

Clause 30 (Repeal) ordered to stand part of the Bill.