HC Deb 04 August 1947 vol 441 cc1153-4

Lords Amendment: In page 45, line 31, at end, insert: (4) Where a smallholdings authority have been authorised to acquire land for the purposes of smallholdings they shall not, except where in special circumstances it appears to them requisite so to do, exercise their powers of acquisition so as to require any person farming the land to give up his occupation of the land before such time as the authority are satisfied that the land is required, and can be adapted, for the purposes of smallholdings.

Mr. T. Williams

I beg to move, "That this House doth agree with the Lords in the said Amendment."

Mr. C. Williams

I would like to ask the Minister two questions on this Amendment. I gather that the object of the Amendment is, for practical purposes, to prevent a local authority from taking over agricultural land until they are adequately and really prepared to develop it into smallholdings. The actual wording of the Amendment seems to make that point clear, but, on the other hand, it is not clear that they are the right people to decide whether they should exercise their powers of acquisition so as to require any person farming the land to give up his occupation of the land before such time as the authority are satisfied that the land is required, and can be adapted, for the purposes of smallholdings. What machinery has the Minister for seeing that the local authority really knows that it is adequately prepared to carry out the intention of the Amendment? It seems to me that he is putting on to the local authorities the power to do this, and that they are really judging their own case. I do not know whether there is any form of appeal to the agricultural committee, or anything of that kind; but it looks as if they are the only people to decide what this comparatively vague wording means, I think that we ought to be very clear about this. I appeal to the Minister as an agriculturist, and with no desire whatever to hurt smallholdings of this type; but I do say that we ought to be very sure that the local authority will not use this power in an arbitrary way. I am not at all happy in my mind that they are really the people to do this. [Interruption.] I am glad to have the backing of hon. Members opposite, but I hope they will not carry it too far and have a really terrific attack on the Minister such as we heard just now. I am trying to ask a simple question. I hope the Minister will give me an answer in some detail.

Mr. T. Williams

I do not quite follow the hon. Member's submission This Amendment is clearly to give the smallholdings authority the right to leave the sitting tenant on the land until the smallholdings authority themselves are satisfied that they need the land for the purpose of carving it up for smallholdings That is the only object of this Amendment—simply to leave the smallholdings authority with power to purchase the land and to leave the sitting tenant there until the time when they think they can adapt it for smallholdings.

Mr. C. Williams

The basis of my question is whether the Minister is satisfied that the smallholdings authorities are the right people to make the decision.

Mr. T. Williams

Actually the smallholdings authorities are the only bodies who lay out smallholdings, so they must be the right bodies to make the decision.

Question put, and agreed to.