HL Deb 04 August 1898 vol 64 cc8-9
THE EARL OF WEMYSS

My Lords, I wish to ask my noble Friend the Secretary of State for War a question, of which I have given him private notice. When the Militia Ballot Bill was last before your Lordships' House there was a question of the Government taking up the Bill which I had brought in. My noble Friend then said— I make this offer to the noble Earl. I am ready to say that we shall, during the coming autumn, have that machinery very carefully examined and revised. It will be so much, at any rate, gained if we have at the War Office, ready to hand a carefully and thoroughly worked-out scheme for giving effect to the ballot, should the ballot ever become indispensable. The question I would ask the noble Marquess is, could this scheme, which he would have worked out during the autumn, be in the least effective without an amending Act?

THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR WAR (The Marquess of LANSDOWNE)

In reply to my noble Friend, I have to say that the scheme would not be effective in the absence of an amending Act. In the speech from which the noble Earl has quoted I guarded myself upon that point by saying— But I wish to guard myself against being supposed by the noble Earl or by anyone else to undertake that Her Majesty's Government will next year, or at any particular moment, make a Bill for the introduction of the ballot part of their programme of legislation. That is a pledge I am certainly not prepared to give.

THE EARL OF WEMYSS

I did not imply that my noble Friend was going to do so, but I hope he will think better of it during the Recess.