§ THE MARQUESS OF LANSDOWNEMy Lords, I beg to ask the noble and learned Viscount on the Woolsack a Question of which I have given him private notice—namely, whether he is able to give the House any information as to the date on which it is proposed to introduce the Resolutions on the reform of the House of Lords.
§ THE LORD CHANCELLOR (VISCOUNT BIRKENHEAD)My Lords, I thank the noble Marquess for having given me notice. The Resolutions to which he refers will, naturally and properly, be moved in this House by the noble Marquess who leads it. Your Lordships are aware that the state of his health in the past few weeks has been such as to give anxiety to all of us, and I am not able to say at this moment when he will be sufficiently restored to undertake a Parliamentary task of this importance. I think the general sense of your Lordships would be that if there is any reasonable hope of his being able to undertake this duty in the comparatively near future, it would be better that we should postpone 875 the introduction of the Resolutions for a week or fortnight in order to have the advantage of his presentation of them. It is our hope that that advantage will not be delayed later than the last week in June or the first week in July. The noble Marquess will observe that I speak a little guardedly. We live in days when it is difficult to make predictions too confidently, but I think I have reasonable grounds for saying this.