§ LORD MUIR MACKENZIEMy Lords I beg to move the Motion of which Notice has been given.
Moved, That the Order made on the 10th day of April last, " That no Provisional Order Confirmation Bill brought from the House of Commons shall be read a Second time after Tuesday, the 17th of June next," be dispensed with, and that the Bill be now read 2a.—(Lord Muir Mackenzie.)
THE CHAIRMAN OF COMMITTEES (THE EARL OF DONOUGHMORE)My Lords, on this Motion I should like to make an appeal to my noble friend, who on this occasion is representing the Ministry of Transport, for his help, not in this Session but in future Sessions. Your Lordships are aware, of course, of the Sessional Order which it is our custom to pass every year, and which is quoted on the Notice Paper before your Lordships:—" That no Provisional Order Confirmation Bill brought from the House of Commons shall be read a second time after Tuesday the 17th of June next." The object of that Sessional 77 Order is not capricious. It is in the interests of the efficient performance of the duties of your Lordships' House. It has been discussed once or twice in recent years with the object of urging public Departments to let us have the business here in reasonable time, and I am bound to say that public Departments, as a rule, have met your Lordships very fairly in this way. I may, for instance, inform your Lordships that the Ministry of Health have done their best, and I thank them for it, to conform to this Sessional Order. They have had eight Provisional Order Bills before your Lordships. Five of them reached this House before the date named, and in regard to three of them the Department had to come to your Lordships and ask your Lordships to waive the Sessional Order. The last of them reached your Lordships on July 8, which was a reasonable date.
But that was before the first of the Ministry of Transport Bills had reached us at all. The first of the Ministry of Transport Bills reached us on July 10. This Bill is the third, and I am told that there is one more which has had to go to the Examiner, and I understand it cannot reach us before next Tuesday. Fortunately, I believe that the first three Bills are unopposed, and I think it is probable that the fourth of them, the Bradford Bill, will also be unopposed. But it is not treating your Lordships fairly. It looks to me as though the Ministry of Transport are making no effort whatever to comply with your Lordships' Sessional Order. There seems to be no reason why these Bills should not be introduced earlier, and I want to appeal to my noble friend to use his influence with the Ministry of Transport to ensure that these Bills shall reach us at a reasonable time in the Session.
§ LORD MUIR MACKENZIEMy Lords, I need scarcely s>ay that I will take the earliest opportunity of informing the Ministry of Transport of the observations made by my noble friend the Lord Chairman. His views upon the subject are of course of paramount importance and he knows very well that in the general tenor of them he has my personal and entire sympathy.
§ On Question, Motion agreed to, and Bill read 2a accordingly.