§ 33. Mr. Garro Jonesasked the Attorney-General what reply he has made to the request from the Bar Council, the Law Society, or other professional quarters, on the subject of legal representation before the military service hardship tribunals and the umpire; and what action he proposes to take in the matter?
§ The Solicitor-General (Sir Terence O'Connor)I have been asked to reply. Following upon representations which were made, it was decided to modify the regulation relating to the subject to which the hon. Member refers in the manner stated in the answer given by my right hon. Friend, the Minister of Labour, to the hon. Member for Doncaster (Mr. J. Morgan) on 18th January.
§ Mr. Garro JonesHas any further action been taken to bring the procedure before the tribunals into line with the procedure before the umpire? Why cannot the legal representation be allowed before the tribunal that is allowed before the umpire?
§ The Solicitor-GeneralThere have been no representations to my right hon. and learned Friend or to my noble Friend the Lord Chancellor in the sense that the hon. Gentleman's Question suggests, and he will recall that the regulations were modified as the result of compromise, and, in the absence of any representation since, we are justified in thinking that the compromise has been acceptable.
§ Mr. CassellsDoes not the hon. and learned Gentleman seriously consider that this policy constitutes a distinct hardship upon the applicant appearing before the Service tribunal?
§ The Solicitor-GeneralThere are, of course, many other considerations, such, for example, as analogous work that these tribunals have to do, which put a different aspect upon what prima facie is agreed.