§ FURTHER PROVISIONS AS TO ORDERS, DIRECTIONS AND REGULATIONS
§ Mr. HattersleyI beg to move Amendment No. 70, in page 6, leave out lines 42 to 46.
This Amendment is not so much to meet the fears expressed in Committee by some hon. Members opposite as the apprehensions and misapprehensions of some hon. Members opposite. Since it raised doubts in the minds of hon. Members who clearly understood the working 728 of the market as well as hon. Members in the Committee, we took the point that the same fears, although groundless, might develop in other places. Since the object we set was the simple, clear and precise definition of those areas in which we wish to make dividend restraint, we felt this Amendment to be necessary to make sure that the misapprehensions should not be duplicated in other places.
Originally our powers to prescribe companies subject to dividend restraint were not only very wide because of the existence of one phrase, but we went on to give examples of companies which might be prescribed. This aroused extraordinary fears, such, for instance, as that our ability to prescribe according to geographical situation might be used arbitrarily as part of the policy. Since we wanted to prove those fears groundless, we accepted that this phase could be easily replaced by a simple designation. I hope that the Amendment meets the point and ends the fears which were so dramatically expressed in Committee.
§ Mr. R. CarrI thank the Under-Secretary for once again paying attention to a point we raised in Committee. He has explained that he has done this because he wished to set at rest fears which he felt were grotesque and groundless. I shall not take up that point at this time, but at least we made the point and in the end the Government felt that these words were not necessary. So we have shortened the Bill. That is a service to remember.
§ Amendment agreed to.