SECOND READING. (Hansard, 21 July 1893)

§ * LORD ACTON

said, this Bill was intended to amend the Purchase of Land Act, 1891, upon one point in which it had proved nearly inoperative. By Section 39 of that Act it was enacted that the Laud Commission might acquire by purchase or on lease land to be placed under the Orders of the Congested Districts Board on such terms and conditions as they might think expedient. But when the Board had purchased an estate with the view to enlarging and amalgamating small holdings they were advised when they had prepared their scheme that the Land Commission could not advance money under the Purchase of Land (Ireland) Act, 1891, because the Congested Districts Boards were not "landlords" under the Acts. Advances only could be made to tenants purchasing from the landlords, and the Boards could not make advances to themselves. It was necessary, therefore, that they should be constituted landlords by Statute, so that they might sell to the tenants when the scheme had been arranged. Otherwise the whole money of the Board would be absorbed by the 189 purchase of a few estates. The effect of the Bill would be to give the Congested Boards the same rights as any other landlords to enter into agreements for sales to tenants, and to apply to the Land Commission to sanction advances for the purpose of such sales. He was always extremely reluctant to trespass unnecessarily on their Lordships' attention, and on that occasion he had a very unusual reason for brevity. This measure for which he was asking a Second Reading was introduced into Parliament jointly by the present Chief Secretary and the present Leader of the Opposition in the other House. He might call it Mr. Morley's Bill, or be might call it Mr. Balfour's—and perhaps the latter designation might be more opportune. Although he did not quote that auspicious conjunction as a sign of the approaching Millennium, still it furnished good reason to hope that the measure would meet with their Lordships' approval.