§ EARL BEAUCHAMPMy Lords, there is a Bill in connection with housing at Rosyth which has just received a Third Reading in another place, and which, I understand, is on its way to your Lordships' House. It is desirable, if your Lordships agree to the passage of the Bill, that it should receive the Royal Assent in the course of this afternoon. Therefore I suggest that the House should adjourn during pleasure and resume when the Bill reaches us.
THE EARL OF CAMPERDOWNMy Lords, I have heard the noble Earl's statement with some surprise. This Bill, according to the newspapers, only passed through Committee in the House of Commons last night, and the noble Earl tells us that it has been read a third time there this afternoon. Your Lordships are to be asked to pass the Bill through all its stages without its being in print and without our knowing anything about it. The Bill gives great powers to the Local Government Board, powers which profess to he given under the Town Planning Act but which are much larger than anything contained in that Act. Really, there is moderation in all things ! If your Lordships pass this Bill in this way you will pass anything, and it is quite unnecessary to bring Bills to this House at all if they are to be dealt with in this sort of way. If it is thought desirable that this Rosyth Bill should be passed with this expedition, I suppose we shall hear what the reasons are when it is introduced. Our duty, we are told, is to revise Bills, but this is the position in which we are placed—we are asked to pass Bills that we have not even seen.
§ EARL BEAUCHAMPMy Lords, it is obvious that His Majesty's Government have no defence to offer to the attack which has just been made by the noble Earl, and we can only throw ourselves on the mercy of the House. I venture to hope that when the Bill reaches us and the noble Earl hears the reasons which can be advanced in its favour he will be induced to look upon it with a more favourable eye.
THE EARL OF CAMPERDOWNThe statement which was made in another place by the Secretary for Scotland, as I shall show your Lordships when the Bill comes up, was absolutely incorrect as regards the facts.
§ THE MARQUESS OF LANSDOWNEMy Lords, I think the House will consider that my noble friend's protest. is not unreasonable. The noble Earl opposite frankly admitted it. This really is going beyond even the wide limits which we have allowed ourselves in these matters. We have just passed through all their stages several Bills, some of which had not been in our hands until we came down to the House this afternoon. But here is a Bill which we have not only not seen, but about which we know nothing. Is this Bill a permanent alteration of the law, or is it only a change intended to operate while the war is in progress? We shall adjourn this afternoon for a fortnight or three weeks. Is the urgency so great that the Bill could not be deferred until after the holiday?
§ EARL BEAUCHAMPThe reason for urgency is that the Bill has to do with the building of houses at Rosyth and the running of tramways so that there can be access between the houses and the dockyard. I see that the Bill has reached your Lordships, so that perhaps we may now proceed with its discussion on a more regular basis.
§ Housing (Rosyth Dockyard) Bill brought from the Commons; read 1a, and to be printed.
§ LORD STANMOREMy Lords, in rising to move the Second Reading of this Bill I may explain that Rosyth Dockyard is in the Burgh of Dunfermline. In terms of the Housing Act, 1914, it is proposed that an authorised society (which has been approved by the Treasury) should build 1057 houses for the accommodation of the dockyard employees on land now belonging to the Admiralty but proposed to be transferred to the society. The Town Council of Dunfermline applied in 1912 to the Scottish Local Government Board for authority to prepare a town planning scheme, which was duly given. The area of the proposed scheme includes the Admiralty land in question. As from the date of application the law prohibits the erection of houses on laud covered by a proposed scheme, except at the risk of the builders. If houses built notwithstanding this prohibition are not in accordance with the scheme finally approved power to pull them down without compensation may be given in certain circumstances.
The town planning scheme under consideration by Dunfermline proceeds on the assumption that an important tramway will be laid on a particular route. Under a recent decision of a Private Bill Committee the tramway company do not now propose to proceed in the first instance with that, particular line of tramways, but will operate first on another route. This decision has seriously interfered with the town planning proposals; it may be necessary to revise them drastically, and this may take a year or more. Meanwhile the area covered by the scheme is practically "sterilised" for building unless the authorised society can be assured that any houses they may now build will not be interfered with in the future on the ground that they do not conform to the town planning scheme as ultimately approved.
It is most essential that the houses for dockyard employees should be put up at once, and the Admiralty are pressing strongly for this. The agreement between the Local Government Board and the society, which by the desire of the Government is to put up the houses, is on the point of signature, and the society can go ahead at once with building, but they must first be guaranteed against interference with the houses put up. These are not of the usual tenement type contemplated in the ordinary Scottish Building Acts and by-laws, but of the garden city cottage type.
It is therefore necessary, if building operations are to begin at once, to free the land affected (1) from the "sterilising" influence of the Town Planning Act, and (2) from building, etc., restrictions imposed 1058 by other Acts or regulations. This Bill proposes to give powers to the Town Council of Dunfermline (subject to the consent, of the Local Government Board for Scotland) and to the Local Government Board to relax the provisions of the Housing and Town Planning Act and any local Acts or regulations so as to enable building to proceed at once, and it is put forward as an emergency measure. Similar powers exist in the Housing, Town Planning, &c., Act, 1909, which are exercisable as part of a town planning scheme.
§ LORD STANMOREI am afraid I cannot tell the noble Earl. I may add that the Bill as originally introduced has undergone amendment in the House of Commons in accordance with a settlement arrived at with the Dunfermline Town Council. The Bill in its present form is satisfactory to that body, and I understand that it passed the House of Commons as an agreed measure.
§ Moved (Standing Order No. XXXIX having been suspended), That the Bill be now read 2a.—(Loud Stanmore.)
THE EARL OF CAMPERDOWNMy Lords, I do not desire to take your Lordships into the rather confusing question of the details of this arrangement between the Town Council of Dunfermline and the Government. I wish merely to point out what has happened in this case. The noble Lord told us that Amendments had been introduced into the Bill which he understood were accepted. Where are those Amendments, and what are they? They were not in the Bill yesterday. The noble Lord also spoke of what he called the "sterilising influence of the Town Planning Act." What in the world he meant by that I have not the remotest idea, because I do not think any one will say that that is not a very stringent Act and that it does not give very great powers to the Local Government Board. That, again, is a subsidiary matter.
I will come to the essence of the Bill, which I think the noble Lord left untouched. It seems that a Scottish Private Bill Commission came to a particular decision. This appears to have interfered with the town planning scheme of Dunfermline, and this Bill was brought in virtually to 1059 alter this decision and to enable things to be clone which otherwise, owing to the decision of the Commission, could not be done. I may say that my reason for addressing your Lordships at all is that this is such a flagrant violation of all the principles of legislation as we have hitherto understood them that I do not think it ought to be allowed to pass without a protest. The Secretary for Scotland, in introducing this Bill, said—
The House will appreciate that it is quite unreasonable to expect this company to find this money if their buildings may be removed without compensation. We must therefore bring in a provision to protect them against that risk. That is the whole object of this Bill. The model upon which it is based is a section in the Housing Act of 1909—Section 55 (2).When one turns to that section it appears that it does nothing of the sort. What the section says is that the Local Government Board may make alterations in an Act of Parliament. But this follows—Provided that where the scheme contains provisions suspending any enactment contained in a public general Act, the scheme shall not come into force unless a draft thereof has been laid before each House of Parliament for a period of not less than forty days during the session of Parliament.There is, therefore, an opportunity given to Parliament to object to the scheme. In this Bill it is proposed to enact that—The Board may suspend any statutory enactments, bylaws, regulations, or other provisions, under whatever authority made, which are in operation in the area included in the scheme.That is giving an absolute power to alter any general Act, the very thing which is prohibited by the subsection of Section 55 quoted by the Secretary for Scotland. It is a power which has never, so far as I know, been given to any body before. I do not think the Secretary for Scotland knew what he was doing, but that is the effect of this provision. By it you are giving to the Local Government Board an absolute power to alter au Act of Parliament, by-law, regulation, or other provision.During the last five or six years we have been giving more and more power to Boards, and there is no doubt that we are now ruled by Boards very much as if they were Houses of Parliament. But this, I am bound to say, is the strongest instance of it that I have ever seen. The Admiralty are, I believe, desirous of having these houses and it may be desirable that the houses should be built, although I am bound to 1060 say that if it is only a question of putting the matter off for a short time I do not see that there is any strong argument in that to oblige us to pass the Bill in the way proposed. It is really converting this House into a farce. How can we revise this Bill? We do not know what it is. Amendments have been inserted which were not in the Bill originally, and even if we knew what those Amendments were the main objection is that the Bill gives to the Local Government Board a. power which has never been given to it before of altering a public Act of Parliament. The intention of the Bill apparently is to alter a private Act. But the Bill goes beyond that. I could have understood it if power were sought to alter the private Act which had been before this Scottish Commission. But this Bill gives power apparently for all time, so far as I can see, to suspend any public Act of Parliament, which I submit is most objectionable.
§ THE MARQUESS OF LANSDOWNEMy Lords, there is one point on which I should be glad if we could be enlightened. It is not clear whether this Bill gives a general permission to the local authorities to override the provisions of the Town Planning Act, or whether what is contemplated is really a local relaxation of these provisions in this particular place and in regard to this particular scheme for providing buildings not of the ordinary type. If the measure is an ad hoc measure designed to meet the needs of the particular place, my objections would be diminished. Our main objection to being asked to pass Bills in this fashion remains, but the outrage would be a lesser one if we had reason to understand that what was involved was not a complete breaking down of the provisions of the existing law but a temporary relaxation in regard to a particular place and occasion.
§ EARL BEAUCHAMPMy Lords, it is impossible for His Majesty's Government to complain of the speech made by the noble Earl, which in the circumstances was perfectly natural. Unfortunately this Bill is not on the Table of the House, and the noble Earl, therefore; has not been able to make himself acquainted with the limitations imposed in the Bill. I am glad to be able to assure the noble Marquess that this is simply a Bill to facilitate the early provision of dwellings, etc., for, or for the convenience of, persons employed by or on behalf of the Admiralty at 1061 Rosyth Dockyard. In Clause 1 appear the words—
it shall be lawful for the Town Council of Dunferailine, on obtaining the approval of the Board…Therefore your Lordships will see that the Bill is wholly limited in area and concerns only the provision of dwellings in this particular place. It. would be quite impossible for the consequences to follow which the noble Earl anticipated—namely, that there would be a power all over the country for the Local Government Board to override the provisions of the Act.
§ EARL BEAUCHAMPAt any rate the Bill is purely local in its application, and the Amendments to which the noble Earl referred were Amendments agreed to by both sides and moved on behalf of the Town Council of Dunfermline. Therefore it is not unfair to say that this has become an agreed Bill and is not objected to by the parties interested. It is desirable that it should be passed at once, so that the erection of these houses may be completed by the autumn. The matter is, I think, quite simple. There was a town planning scheme approved by the Local Government Board and the Town Council of Dunfermline, and it was proposed to build in certain places. The other day a Scottish Private Bill joint Committee considered the matter, and in consequence of some Amendments which were then made the tramway company resolved that they would not proceed with the line in the direction in which it was originally contemplated they would proceed. Therefore the land proposed to be dealt with cannot be utilised because of the absence of the tramway, and it is necessary to make considerable alterations in order that the buildings may be erected in some other place which will be suitable and where there will be access to the tramways. I can only repeat that we have no defence to offer to the protest of the noble Earl, and if he persists in his objection it will be necessary to postpone the Bill until after the Whitsuntide adjournment. I venture to hope, however, that your Lordships will not think that course necessary in view of the extremely limited operation of this Bill.
§ On Question, Bill read 2a.
§ Committee negatived: Bill read 3a, and passed. (No 73.)