§ * THE EARL OF PEMBROKErose to move the Second Reading of this Bill. He remarked that the object of the Bill was to acquire the site known as the "Parliament Street Site"—that was, a site bounded respectively by Charles Street, Parliament Street, Great George Street, as far as the Institute of Civil Engineers, Boar's Yard, and Delahay Street. On this site the First Commissioner proposed to erect public offices, and to devote a portion of the site to the widening of Parliament Street, so as to throw the existing street back in a line with Whitehall. The Bill had passed the Second Reading in the House 8 of Commons with no real opposition, and it was referred to a hybrid Committee in the usual way, when one new clause was added for the protection of the Institute of Civil Engineers, and an Amendment was inserted in Clause 2 with respect to the powers of the Government in taking land of this kind. The other stages of the Bill had passed in the House of Commons without any opposition. This Bill was a consequence of the Act of last year, which was entitled the Public Offices (Acquisition of Site) Act, which authorised the raising of £450,000 for the purpose, and gave Parliamentary sanction to the Scheme. The present Bill was necessary to enable the Government to purchase compulsorily, and he hoped their Lordships would assent to its Second Reading. He moved that the Bill be read a Second time.
§ Read 2a (according to Order), and committed; the Committee to be proposed by the Committee of Selection.