HC Deb 29 July 1952 vol 504 cc1410-1

Lords Amendment: In page 10, line 39, at end insert: A council, when giving an undertaking under this subsection, may lay down, as conditions to which payment of the contributions undertaken to be made is to be subject, such conditions as it may appear to that council to be expedient to impose for securing the intended relief from congestion or over-population.

Mr. H. Macmillan

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

This Amendment is really consequential upon an Amendment which was made to Clause 4 on the Report stage. The Amendment to Clause 4 which now appears as Clause 4 (2) made it clear, if indeed it was necessary to make it clear, that a local authority contributing to the expenses of the council of a receiving district could attach to its payments conditions of the kind mentioned in that subsection. This Amendment in the same way empowers a local authority to attach conditions of the same character to contributions which it may make to the expenses of any other authority participating in the development.

The hon. Member for Oldham, West (Mr. Hale) had an Amendment on the Report stage which raised this point, but the actual words of that Amendment were not quite suitable. I undertook to look into the matter. I accepted the spirit of what he proposed, and I am grateful to him for having brought the matter before the House. These words carry out the undertaking which I then gave, and they have been inserted in another place to make clear in appropriate drafting what was the hon. Member's intention and what is my desire to accept.

Question put, and agreed to.