Lords Sitting of 16 May 1907

Preamble
The Lord Brodrick (V. Midleton) sat first in Parliament after the death of his father.

PRIVATE BILL BUSINESS.
THE LORD CHANCELLOR acquainted the House, That the Clerk of the Parliaments had laid upon the Table the Certificate from the Examiners, that the Standing Orders applicable to the following Bill have been complied with: Local Government (Ireland) Provisional Orders [H.L.].
Also the Certificate that no Standing Orders are applicable to the following Bill: Gas and Water Orders Confirmation (No. 1) [H.L.].
The same were ordered to lie on the Table.
Broad stairs and St. Peter's Urban District Water Bill [H.L.]. Petition for additional provision; of the Broad stairs and St. Peter's Urban District Council, under their Common Seal, together with the proposed clause and Amendments annexed thereto; read, and referred to the Examiners.
Ashton-under-Lyne, Stalybridge, and Dukinfield (District) Waterworks Bill [H.L.]. Reported from the Select Committee, with Amendments.
Brecon and Merthyr Tydfil Junction Railway Bill; Great Yarmouth Port and Haven Bill; Boston Spa Gas Bill. Read 2a, and committed.
North East London Railway Bill; London and North-Western Railway (Superannuation Fund) Bill; Plymouth and North Devon Direct Railway (Abandonment) Bill. Read 3a, and passed.
Collooney, Ballina, and Belmullet Railways and Piers Bill; Kingston-upon-Hull Corporation Bill. Brought from the Commons, read 1a, and referred to the Examiners.
Electric Lighting Provisional Orders (No. 1) Bill [H.L.]. Read 2a (according to order).
Marriages Provisional Order Bill: Metropolitan Police Provisional Order Bill. Read 3a (according to order), and passed.

RETURNS, REPORTS, ETC.
  COLONIAL CONFERENCE, 1907
  Published Proceedings and Précis of the Colonial Conference, 30th April to 14th May 1907.

  TRADE REPORTS (ANNUAL SERIES).
  No. 3788. Siam (Monthons of Saiburi and Puket).
  No. 3789. Argentine Republic (Buenos Ayres).
  No. 3790. Portugal (Beira).

  Papers relating to the case of George Edalji.

  MINES (EIGHT HOUR DAY FOR MINERS).
  Final Report of the Departmental Committee appointed to inqure into the probable economic effect of a limit of eight hours to the working day of coal miners; Report, minutes of evidence, and appendices.
  Presented (by Command), and ordered to lie on the Table.

  POLLING DISTRICTS.
  (County of Durham). Order made by the council of the county of Durham altering certain polling districts in the South-eastern and Houghton-le-Spring Parliamentary Divisions.
  (County of Lancaster). Order made by the council of the county of Lancaster re-dividing the Darwen Parliamentary Division into convenient polling districts.

  SHOP HOURS ACT, 1904 (BOROUGH OF ACCRINGTON).
  Orders made by the council of the borough of Accrington, and confirmed by the Secretary of State for the Home Department, fixing the hours of closing for certain classes of shops within the borough.

  NAVAL SAVINGS BANKS.
  Account of deposits in Naval Savings Banks and the payments thereof, and of

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  interest theron, of all investments under the Naval Savings Banks Act, 1866, and the application of the interest or dividends accruing in respect thereof, and of the proceeds of any sale of any stocks, annuities, or securities during the financial year 1905–1906.
  Laid before the House (pursuant to Act), and ordered to lie on the Table.

  COMPANIES BILL [H.L.]
  Bill read 3a (according to order).
  THE LORD CHANCELLOR (Lord LOREBURN): My Lords, there are some Amendments which I have to propose at this stage. The first one is an Amendment which was on the Paper for the Report stage, but through some oversight was omitted. It does not affect the substance of the Bill, but merely provides that the reissue of a debenture or the issue of another debenture in its place under the section shall be treated as the issue of a new debenture for the purposes of stamp duty, but shall not be so treated for the purpose of any provision limiting the amount or number of debentures to be issued. It is one of those provisions required by the Treasury in order to prevent the evasion of stamp duty on the issue of debentures.
  Amendment moved—
  "In page 12, line 34, after Subsection (3), to insert as a new subsection—(4) The re-issue of a debenture or the issue of another debenture in its place under this section, whether made before or after the passing of this Act, shall be treated as the issue of a new debenture for the purposes of stamp duty, but it shall not be so treated for the purpose of any provision limiting the amount or number of debentures to be issued.'"—(The Lord Chancellor.)
  On Question, Amendment agreed to.
  THE LORD CHANCELLOR: The other Amendments standing on the Paper are not in themselves of any importance, but are miscellaneous Amendments of the Companies Acts inserted in the; schedule. Our object is contemporaneously with this Bill to amend and consolidate the company law. Our scheme is to introduce a Consolidation Bill, pure and simple, and, as soon as this Bill is passed, and the other Bill brought in, then to include in the other Bill all the provisions
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  of this Bill, which we shall repeal as soon as it is passed. That is the best way of separating what is new from what is merely consolidation. Originally it was intended that in the Consolidation Bill there should be certain minor Amendments proposed, but I objected on the ground that such a Bill ought to be a Consolidation Bill pure and simple. Therefore the changes, in themselves unimportant, which would otherwise have been inserted in the Consolidation Bill are now proposed in the form of a new schedule to this Bill. It is proposed to insert, after Clause 49, as a new clause—
  "The Amendments specified in the Third Schedule of this Act, which relate to minor details, shall be made in the Companies Acts."
  That would appear at first sight an unscientific way of dealing with the matter, and some criticism has been made upon the form of words, as though it were an unusual form; but our only sin in this respect is the sin of plagiarism, for this wording appeared in the Land Registry Act. I think it is a convenient way of doing what will be admitted on all hands to be desirable.
  Amendment moved—
  "After Clause 49 to insert as a new clause: 'The Amendments specified in the Third Schedule to this Act, which relate to minor details, shall be made in the Companies Act.'"—(The Lord Chancellor).
  On Question, Amendment agreed to.
  Amendment moved—
  "Clause 50, page 22, line 25, to leave out the word 'Third' and to insert the word 'Fourth.'—(The Lord Chancellor.)
  On Question, Amendment agreed to.
  THE LORD CHANCELLOR: The object of the first Amendment in Section 28 of the Companies Act, 1862, is to require a company to give notice to the Registrar of the reconversion of stock into shares in the same way as it now has to give notice of the conversion of stock into shares. The object of the second Amendment is to enable a person to require a copy of part only of the register, and to permit some charge being made for supplying the copy. The third Amendment is for the purpose of imposing a penalty on liquidators who fail to file a return

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  showing the date of the final winding up. The fourth Amendment has reference to a reduction of capital and the liability of shareholders in connection therewith. The next Amendment is to allow an increase of the nominal amount of shares when unregistered companies are registered as limited companies; and the last Amendment is to repeal Section 7 of the Act of 1879, which has been in effect

  THIRD SCHEDULE.

  MISCELLANEOUS AMENDMENTS OF COMPANIES ACTS.

  Enactment to be amended.

  Nature of Amendment.

  Companies Act, 1862 (25 & 26 Vict. c. 89), s. 28.

  After the word "stock" there shall be inserted the words "or re-converted stock into shares."

  After the word "conversion" there shall be inserted the words "or re-conversion."

  After the word "converted" there shall be inserted the words or the stock re-converted."

  s. 32

  After the words "herein-before mentioned" there shall be inserted the words "or any part thereof."

  After the word "sixpence" there shall be inserted the words "or such less sum as the company may prescribe."

  After the words "hundred words" there shall be inserted the words "or fractional part thereof."

  s. 143

  At the beginning there shall be inserted the words "Within one week after such meeting."

  After the words "the same was held" there shall be inserted the words "The registrar on receiving such return shall forthwith register it."

  Companies Act, 1867 (30 & 31 Vict. c. 131), s. 16.

  After the word "paid" there shall be inserted the words "or (as the case may be) the reduced amount, if any, which is to be deemed to have been paid.''

  Companies Act, 1879 (42 & 43 Vict. c. 76), s. 5.

  For the words "in cases where no such increase of nominal capital may be resolved upon" there shall be substituted the words "either in conjunction with or without any such increase of nominal capital."

  s. 7

  The whole section except the proviso to sub-section (5) to be repealed.

  —(The Lord Chancellor)

  On Question, Amendment agreed to.
  Bill passed and sent to the Commons.

  THE UNION JACK CLUB.
  LORD ROSMEAD: My Lords, I beg to ask His Majesty's Government if it is a fact that an arrangement is being made by the India Office by which an officer on leave from a regiment in the Indian Army is about to be seconded in order to take up an appointment as "Controller" of the Union Jack Club.
  superseded, but which has not been formally repealed. The whole of these Amendments are Amendments of details in the Companies Acts which ought to be made preparatory to consolidation.
  Amendment proposed—
  "In page 25, at end, to insert as a new schedule—
  EARL BEAUCHAMP: My Lords, the noble Lord is perfectly accurate in saying that a request has been received from the council of the Union Jack Club for the loan of an officer on leave from a regiment in the Indian Army; but the Secretary of State for India, having given the matter full consideration, does not regard the object in view as one for which a charge should be put on the revenue of India or exceptional arrangements sanctioned.

  PROHIBITION OF MEDICAL PRACTICE BY COMPANIES BILL [H.L.]

    DENTAL COMPANIES (RESTRICTIONS OF PRACTICE) BILL [H.L.]
    The Lords following were named of the Select Committee:—V. Falkland, V. Knutsford, L. Hylton, L. Ludlow, L. Colebrook.
    The Committee appoint their own Chairman.
    House adjourned at twenty minutes before Five o'clock, to Tuesday, the 28th instant, half-past Ten o'clock.