HC Deb 25 February 1941 vol 369 cc405-7
The Attorney-General

I beg to move, in page 8, line 13, to leave out from "payments," to the end of line 15, and to insert: the time of the completion of the works, or where payment is to be made by instalments, of the relevant parts thereof, or the expiration of such period thereafter as may be reason-ably requisite for enabling the Commission to ascertain whether they have been duly completed and what was the proper cost thereof; It was represented in Committee that this Clause as drafted imposed no time limit within which the cost of works payment must be made and, under the words here proposed to be left out, it might have been made at any time after the work had been done. This Amendment meets that point.

Amendment agreed to.

Captain Crookshank

I beg to move, in page 8, line 17, to leave out "the Treasury may direct," and to insert may be specified in regulations made by the Treasury. We had considered that there should be an Amendment here on the Committee stage, but it was not moved. My right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade referred to making Regulations as to the time of payment, and we think it is a reasonable suggestion that, instead of directions, Regulations should be here provided for as to the time of payment, so that this House should have the opportunity of putting questions on the subject if it should so desire.

Amendment agreed to.

The Attorney-General

I beg to move, in page 8, line 19, to leave out Subsection (2).

This Sub-section gives power to the Commission to direct that the right to a payment shall be forfeited if works are not completed by a certain date. It was represented that that was a drastic, and perhaps unnecessary, power; and, on reflection, my right hon. Friend thought that it was unnecessary.

Mr. Silkin (Peckham)

I am one of those who thought the Sub-section rather drastic, but it seems to me that the right hon. and learned Gentleman has now gone too far the other way. If the Subsection is deleted, there will be no sanction to compel a person to carry out repairs to his premises. This Bill has been brought forward in the public interest. We are making an exceptionally favourable cost-of-works payment, because we believe it to be in the national interest that the works should be carried out, but now there will be no reason why a person should not wait 10 or 20 years— I agree that he is not likely to do so— before carrying out the repairs. Is it proposed to put anything into the Bill in place of this Sub-section; or could a person, hypothetically, come along 10 years later, and get the cost-of-works payment?

The Attorney-General

I agree with the hon. Member's point, but I think this is a matter which could be appropriately dealt with by the procedure which will govern the Commission's regulations. We do not propose to put anything into the Bill in substitution for this Sub-section: it is difficult to think of any substitute which would not go just as far as the Sub-section does; but I have the point in mind, and it will be kept in view when the Regulations are drawn up.

Amendment agreed to

Captain Crookshank

I beg to move, in page 9, line 8, to leave out "five," and to insert "eight."

This Amendment was dealt with in the general statement that my right hon. Friend made. It raises the possible amount of the advance in both cases from £500 to £800.

Amendment agreed to.

Further Amendments made:

In page 9, line 10, leave out "five," and insert "eight."

In line 17, leave out "made," and insert "paid." — [Captain Crookshank.]

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

Brigadier-General Clifton Brown(New-bury)

Some of us moved an Amendment providing that the interest should be paid at half-yearly intervals, instead of at the end of the period. The Government have gone so far as to provide that this payment should be made on completion of the works. I do not know whether the Chancellor has considered the question of whether the interest on value payments ought not to be paid more regularly than is at present provided.

The Attorney-General

I would point out that one will not know whether a payment is to be on a cost-of-works basis or a value basis until after the war, when the building situation and values become apparent. Still less will one know what the amount of the value payment will be.

Question, "That the Clause, as amended, stand part of the Bill," put, and agreed to.