§ Mr. SpeakerI have a brief statement to make about Questions on the Order Paper.
My attention has been drawn to the effect of the proposed shortening of the Christmas Adjournment on the operation of the 21-day rule for notice of Questions. Under the original proposal, to adjourn till 22nd January, notice could be given yesterday and today for Oral Questions up till 8th February. Under the proposal before the House today, if it is carried, to adjourn till 17th January, notice can only be given today until 1st February. But the Clerks at the Table, acting under the original proposal, have already accepted notices up till 8th February. Standing Order 8(6) does not prescribe what should be done, and I must, therefore, subject to the views of the House, rule on the matter.
The 21-day rule derives from the Second Report, to which the House agreed, of the Procedure Committee of Session 1964–65. In an appendix to that Report the Committee suggested that in the event of the House disagreeing to the proposed dates for an Adjournment, the notices given on the assumption of the agreement of the House to such dates should be withdrawn, or the dates altered.
The present position, though not exactly that envisaged, is analogous to it. However, I propose to allow Questions still to be receivable for any day up to and including 8th February. Really, by Thursday, only two days are involved in the irregularity, and the inconvenience which would be caused to Members, Departments and printers by insisting on 1092 the out-of-time Questions being withdrawn would seem to me to outweigh any possible advantages.
I think that I should, however, say that I would not hesitate to rule in the opposite sense if the circumstances were different, and if there were a larger number of days at stake.