HC Deb 30 April 1971 vol 816 cc880-2

Lords Amendment: No. 4, in page 6, line 20, at end insert: () This Act shall come into force on 1st October 1971.

Mr. McLaren

I beg to move, That this House doth agree with the Lords in the said Amendment.

At present there is no commencement provision in the Bill. Therefore, normally it will come into effect on receiving Royal Assent. The effect of the Amendment is that the Bill should come into force on 1st October next. The intention is to give the profession rather more time to take account of the Bill and to become familiar with its provisions and also to enable the Land Registry to amend some of its rules of procedure. In fixing a date the other place took into account the suitability of the date which marks the opening of the legal year.

Since this is the last Amendment, I hope that I may be allowed to express my thanks to the Law Commission which did the greater share of the work on this Bill. I also pay tribute to the Lord Chancellor's Department and those who have kindly taken part in the debate this morning on both Front Benches. I hope that this will be a useful measure of law reform and will save a good deal of trouble to the public and to solicitors.

Mr. Carlisle

I am sure it will be felt that this Bill is a useful piece of law reform which will be welcomed by the legal profession and will be of assistance to the public generally.

I thank my hon. Friend for what he said about the Lord Chancellor's Department and, since today I am virtually standing in for the Law Officers, I suppose I can be said to be speaking on their behalf. I will see that my hon. Friend's remarks are conveyed to them because I appreciate they have been able to cooperate very closely with my hon. Friend in assisting him in the passage of the Bill.

The Amendment is welcome. I do not know whether the Bill went through the House so speedily on a Friday afternoon that it was not noticed that there was no commencement date, or whether it was felt that the right time for the Bill to come into force was when it received Royal Assent. But, as my hon. Friend said, when one is dealing with the reform of the law it is desirable to give the legal profession time to take account of the enactments in the Bill and to absorb them before the Measure comes into effect. It is also necessary to allow time for other agencies concerned—such as the Land Registry—to make minor, but necessary, changes which the Bill will necessitate.

Although the time lag between Royal Assent and the commencement date is by no means long—we have passed many Bills with a greater time gap than between now and 1st October of this year—it is felt that this degree of breathing space will assist in ensuring the smooth running of the Act. Like my hon. Friend, I, too, hope that this Measure will be of assistance. As the Law Commission said, reform in this aspect of the law is needed. This is a good Measure, I am sure that it will be of assistance, and I am grateful to my hon. Friend for steering it through the House.

Mr. S. C. Silkin

The only question that I have on the Amendment is whether the Government are satisfied that the additional period—and I am sure that an additional period is necessary—will be adequate for the Land Registry to make the necessary amendments to its rules, whatever they may be. This is one of the factors which prompted the noble and learned Lord to insert this date in another place. If that assurance is available, I shall support the Amendment.

Mr. Carlisle

As my hon. Friend said, 1st October of this year seemed a suitable date to choose from the legal profession's point of view in that it is the commencement of the legal year. It was considered, also, that it provided a satisfactory period from the point of view of the Land Registry and the Law Commission. I think, therefore, that I am capable of giving the assurance for which the hon. and learned Gentleman has asked and saying that those who are primarily concerned with this issue feel that the gap will be adequate to bring about any necessary amendments to their rules.

Mr. Silkin

I am grateful to the Minister for that assurance. There are all kinds of possible convenient dates. We could have chosen 1st January, which is the beginning of the year, but if the Government are satisfied that the rules can be published and studied within the period provided—and the responsibility for deciding that lies with the Government—I am content to leave the matter there.

I conclude by saying that one of the useful functions which a Private Member can perform if he is lucky in the Ballot is to give effect to recommendations of the Law Commission. I am glad that the hon. Gentleman has taken this opportunity to do that, and I hope that further opportunities will arise in the same way in future years.

Question put and agreed to.