§ 3. Mr. Spriggsasked the Attorney-General if he will refer the complaint sent to him on behalf of Mrs. May Wright, a constituent of the hon. Member for St. Helens, about the illegal use made of minors by door-to-door salesmen employed by New Era Electrics of Blackpool, and the wrongful removal of property from her home, to the Director of Public Prosecutions.
§ Mr. SpriggsIs the Attorney-General aware that this case is about a widowed old-age pensioner who has been robbed of her goods by the agents New Era Electrics of Blackpool during her absence and that the signature on the hire-purchase document is that of a minor, a relative of this old lady who is a constituent of mine, and was signed during her absence, that I have made every endeavour to get this matter settled off the record and without publicity, but that the firm preferred to go to court even though it used the document knowing it to have been signed by a minor? Is it not the case that the Attorney-General is refusing to use his powers as a deterrent to stop these rogues from invading the homes of people throughout the country and making a fat living out of poor people? Will not the Attorney-General make a further statement as to his approach to this matter?
§ The Attorney-GeneralThe hon. Gentleman was good enough to send me the papers that he had. I looked at them with great care. I could not see that they revealed the commission 202 of any criminal offence. Had there been evidence to show that one had been committed, I would certainly have been willing to consider what ought to have been done, but I cannot launch criminal proceedings when there is no evidence. If the hon. Gentleman has evidence that a criminal offence has been committed, the facts ought to be investigated by the local police, and they can no doubt deal with this matter.