§ Lords Amendment: No. 132, in page 51, line 27, leave out subsection (2).
§ 10.15 p.m.
§ Mr. R. CarrI beg to move, That this House doth agree with the Lords in the said Amendment.
Perhaps it will be convenient if, with this Amendment, we take Lords Amendment No. 133, in page 51, line 36, leave out subsection (4).
I can briefly summarise the purpose of these Amendments. The Bill originally laid down that the registrars had to be legally qualified. While it is desirable that legal expertise should be available to registrars, it is not essential that the registrars themselves should be legally 1727 qualified. Other qualifications, such as a knowledge of industrial relations and so forth, are just as important.
§ The Amendments will make it easier to make the most appropriate appointments in the future. Although the registrars will take over certain adjudicatory functions from the present registrars of friendly societies, these will henceforth be subject to the new right of appeal to the Industrial Court, and that new right of appeal over adjudicated decisions by the registrars seems to us to remove the last major obstacle of principle which prevented the registrars themselves from being other than legally qualified. Therefore, we believe it is right that the Bill should provide that the registrars, while they could be legally qualified, need not have to be.
§ Mr. John FraserThe Bill is likely to have the Royal Assent if it goes through tonight. Can the right hon. Gentleman say who the registrars will be?
§ Question put and agreed to.
§ Subsequent Lords Amendment agreed to.