HC Deb 20 February 1957 vol 565 c527
Mr. Erroll

I beg to move, in page 4, line 7, at the end to insert: (5) Subsection (3) of section twelve of the Patents Act, 1949 (which provides for an extension of time where an appeal is pending or the time for appealing has not expired), shall apply in relation to the revised period as extended by virtue of the preceding provisions of this section as it applies in relation to the period referred to in that subsection. This Clause provides powers for allowing special extensions of time for putting in order applications which are pending when the Act comes into force and which have already been pending for a longer time than the new period to be allowed by Clause 1. As the Bill stands, such applications are outside the provisions of Section 12 (3) of the 1949 Act, but it is thought just to apply those provisions to them also, in spite of their age.

This is a small provision. It is unlikely that it will require to be invoked on more than possibly a few occasions, but it is felt that the opportunity should be taken, by means of this Amendment, to make these facilities available to those few cases which might otherwise fail through not having sufficient time.

Sir F. Soskice

This is a small and un-ambitious change and, so far as I can see, would, as the Minister says, have application in comparatively few cases. For the reasons which he has given, to which, speaking for myself, I would entirely assent, I feel that it is an improvement in the Bill, and I think that the House should accept it.

Amendment agreed to.

Bill read the Third time and passed, with Amendments.