§ 3.54 p.m.
§ The purpose of this Motion is to provide for a Recommittal stage for discussion of the Finance Bill. Such a stage was envisaged by the Select Committee on Procedure and, I think, pressed for by the right hon. Member for Enfield, West (Mr. Iain Macleod).
§ In a few words, the case for a Recommittal stage is that it will give an opportunity to hon. Members who were not members of the Committee upstairs to raise points or move Amendments on the Floor of the House. To give the maximum time for this to be done, the Government do not propose to table any Amendments on Recommittal. Any Amendments that we have will be kept until Report. It may be that the Official Opposition will think that it would be helpful if they took the same approach.
§ The Government would thus be given the maximum opportunity to consider Amendments moved by hon. Members who were not members of the Standing Committee and, where these were acceptable in some form, it would still leave time for the Government to have them suitably prepared and accepted on Report.
§ 3.55 p.m.
§ Mr. Iain Macleod (Enfield, West)In the present situation, which we have opposed and on which we have made our views clear, I am sure that, in general, this proposal is for the convenience of the House and, therefore, we accept it.
I have only one point to raise, and, in large measure, it is one for the Leader of the House; and perhaps he will allow me to return to the matter during Business Questions on Thursday. It may be 44 that this Recommittal stage will come fairly swiftly—we do not know; I see no great need for hurry—but we have not seen the reprinted Bill. It will not be reported from the Committee until about midnight on Wednesday.
The point that I wish to put to the Leader of the House and the Financial Secretary is this. This is a new procedure and, therefore, there is nothing to guide us in the matter. The Financial Secretary seemed to indicate that he thought that the Recommittal stage should be almost exclusively a field-day for the eleven-twelfths of those hon. Members who were excluded from the Committee upstairs and that they should have their go at the Government with some hope, at least, that some of their Amendments might be accepted.
I take that point as far as it goes, but it would be a great mistake to try to exclude those right hon. and hon. Members who have been toiling over the Bill in Committee. Therefore, I do not go as far as the Financial Secretary in saying that the Official Opposition would not wish to table Amendments on the Recommittal stage; certainly we would.
A Recommittal stage is a good idea, and I take the point that it should be basically for those hon. Members who were unable to take part in the Committee stage. However, because time will be short, it is a matter of importance for the Leader of the House to make this clear to the House as soon as possible so that hon. Members who have not followed the flow of events upstairs may get their Amendments on the Notice Paper as soon as possible. It may be 45 that the Leader of the House can give me an interim reply now, and we might return to this on Thursday if, in fact, his announcement of next week's Business includes something about Recommittal of the Bill.
§ The Lord Privy Seal and Leader of the House of Commons (Mr. Fred Peart)The right hon. Member for Enfield, West (Mr. Iain Macleod) has made a fair point. Certainly, I will give him more details when I make my Business Statement on Thursday.
This Motion was tabled for the convenience of the House. I agree it should not inhibit even hon. Members of the Official Opposition from putting down Amendments. However, I have noted what the right hon. Member has said, and I will elaborate on this on Thursday.
§ Question put and agreed to.