Licensing (Amendment) Bill (Hansard, 1 May 1987)

§ Sir Bernard Braine (Castle Point)
On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. My point of order concerns our procedures. I do not know whether there is any precedent, but in my long years I have never known a Bill such as the one before us today which has been rushed through—not by the sponsors—with such indecent haste. It was reported late on Wednesday evening and is to be considered as first business today, but hon. Members wishing to table amendments were unable to obtain a printed copy of the amended Bill. I asked for one yesterday but could not obtain one. The printed copy was simply not available.
The Bill is not lengthy, but it is highly technical and, as I hope to show later, has grave implications for our society in terms of child protection, road safety, and so on. The House may consider this justifiable, but the Bill makes a very serious breach in established licensing procedures. Despite the handicap that I have mentioned, I managed to put down a number of amendments which you. Mr. Speaker, in your wisdom, have seen fit to select. Had the printed Bill been available, I and other hon. Members might have been able to put down other amendments, but we have been hindered in that respect.
I ask you, Mr. Speaker, as guardian of the rights of all Back Bench Members, for your guidance as to whether such casual, inefficient and inconsiderate arrangements, which clearly militate against proper consideration on Report, should be allowed to obtain in future.

§ Mr. Speaker
I understand the point raised by the right hon. Gentleman. The Bill was indeed reported on Wednesday. There are few opportunities for hon. Members with private Members' Bills and today is a day on which remaining stages are taken. Bearing in mind the fact that the Bill was reported only on Wednesday, I have been generous to the right hon. Gentleman and have selected amendments which were starred. I think, therefore, that the Bill should proceed.

§ Mr. D. N. Campbell-Savours (Workington)
Further to that point of order, Mr. Speaker. I intervene at this stage as I suspect that you are about to move to another point.
You, Mr. Speaker, have just ruled in reply to the right hon. Member for Castle Point (Sir B. Braine). Could you tell us the precedent for that ruling? I have not been able to establish it, but I am sure that you did that work before coming to the House today. I believe that the House is entitled to know what the precedent is, because we have been approached by a number of organisations asking how it is possible for Parliament to debate these matters in this way. I have given assurances that we shall seek to establish what the precedents are. I am sure that you, Mr. Speaker. will be most forthcoming and will wish to advise the House before we proceed with the Bill. Otherwise, people will wonder what we are doing in this place.

§ Mr. Speaker
This is a private Member's day. As the hon. Gentleman knows, there are 12 such Fridays in a Session when Bills have precedence; the first six are for Second Readings and the latter six are for remaining stages. The promoter of the Bill has, as is his right, chosen today to debate its remaining stages. I took into account 485 the fact that the Bill was reported only on Wednesday, and I have been generous in my selection of amendments. I think that we should proceed.