§ THE MARQUESS OF SALISBURYMy Lords, I desire to ask the Lord President of the Council whether he can make any further statement about public business.
§ THE LORD PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL (LORD PARMOOR)My Lords, I am much obliged to the noble Marquess for putting the question. There will have to be a formal meeting of the House to-morrow in order to take the First Reading of two important Bills which are expected to come up to your Lordships then. There is certainly one Bill, and there may be two Bills. It will only be a formal meeting, and I need not trouble your Lordships to attend. We shall only want a quorum, and the most convenient time for meeting can be arranged. I propose that on Monday next the House shall meet at a quarter past three o'clock as there is a good deal of important business to be dealt with. On Tuesday we meet at the usual time as the Committee for Privileges also meets that day. I hope the Unemployment Insurance (No. 2) Bill will be read a second time to-night, and if it should be, it is most important that we should take the Committee stage on Monday. That procedure was arranged, and I therefore propose to put down a Motion so that the Committee stage can 949 be taken after the question which is being raised by Earl Beauchamp and which I do not like to displace. It is important that this Bill should go through all its stages by Wednesday. Questions may arise between the two Houses if your Lordships insert Amendments. Therefore, the Notice which I propose to give will bring the Committee stage of this Bill on Monday before the Report stage of the London Traffic Bill.
§ THE MARQUESS OF SALISBURYI am glad that the noble and learned Lord remembers that the Report stage of the London Traffic Bill is down for Monday. I do not know whether he thinks it wise to put the Committee stage of the Unemployment Insurance Bill in front of it, but I should not resist the proposal if he thinks it the better plan. I cannot engage that the London Traffic Bill will not take some time. There were four or five points of substance left to be considered on Report stage and they may take up some little time. If the Unemployment Insurance (No. 2) Bill took too long it might mean that the London Traffic Bill would have to be put off until a later day.
§ LORD PARMOORI have considered that point, and I hope that will not be the result. The reason why I want the Unemployment Insurance Bill to have precedence is that it has to come into operation on a particular date. I hope to take the Finance Bill on Tuesday of next week.
§ EARL BEAUCHAMPMay I say that my Question with regard to Abyssinia on Monday will, so far as I am concerned, take only about three minutes.
§ LORD PARMOORI am much obliged to the noble Earl. All I want to do is to preserve the position of his Question, which has been on the Paper for some time.