§ Mr. Tam Dalyell (Linlithgow)On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. As the hon. Member who represents Bathgate, I should like to say that many of us are greatly in your debt for having allowed a Standing Order No. 10 debate on Bathgate, because, as a result, certain things, which I do not wish to go into, have happened which otherwise would not have happened. The debate has affected events.
I know that you do not have to give reasons, but on what criteria do you decide whether to award debates under Standing Order No. 10 on such critical industrial situations? It is legitimate to say that many of us regard three-hour debates on matters such as the Lear Fan project as extremely important, because they can do some good in the outside world.
§ Mr. SpeakerI am interested in what the hon. Gentleman has said. I did not state the criterion, because I thought that the House would fully understand it. I did not consider that the particular matter should have precedence over the business set down for today or tomorrow.