§ Order of the Day for the House to be put into Committee read.
§ Moved, That the House do now resolve itself into Committee.—(Earl De La Warr.)
§ On Question, Motion agreed to.
§ House in Committee accordingly:
§ [The EARL OF DONOUGHMORE in the Chair.]
§ Clauses 1 to 3 agreed to.
§ Clause 4:
§ Joint advisory committees.
§ 4.—(1) For the purpose of framing regulations under this Act and for securing uniformity of standards, there shall be established a joint committee consisting of the Minister of Health, who shall be chairman, the Secretary for Scotland, and the Minister of Home Affairs for Northern Ireland:
617§ Provided that each member of the joint committee may appoint a deputy to act for him at meetings of the committee at which he is unable to be present.
§ (2) For the purpose of assisting the joint committee in the preparation of regulations under this Act, there shall be appointed an advisory committee consisting of one member appointed by the Minister of Health, who shall be chairman, one member appointed by the Scottish Board of Health, one member appointed by the Minister of Home Affairs for Northern Ireland, one member appointed by the Medical Research Council, one member appointed by the General Medical Council, and one member appointed by the Council of the Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain.
§ EARL DE LA WARR moved, in subsection (2), to leave out "and" after "General Medical Council," and to add to the clause" and one member appointed by the Council of the Institute of Chemistry of Great Britain and Ireland." The noble Earl said: These Amendments are necessary in consequence of the decision to include the Institute of Chemistry among the bodies appointing members of the Committee.
§ Amendments moved—
§ Page 3, line 19, leave out ("and")
§ Page 3, line 20, at end insert ("and one member appointed by the Council of the Institute of Chemistry of Great Britain and Ireland").—(Earl De La Warr.)
THE EARL OF ONSLOWCan the noble Earl explain why it has been suggested that the Institute of Chemistry should be added?
§ EARL DE LA WARRThe Minister was advised that, in view of the status of the Institute of Chemistry, it was desirable that it should be included in the list. Your Lordships will probably have noticed that the Pharmaceutical Society is already included.
§ On Question. Amendments agreed to.
§ Clause 4, as amended, agreed to.
§ Clause 5:
§ Power to make regulations.
§ 5.—(1) The joint committee, after consultation with the advisory committee, may make regulations for the following purposes:—
§ (f) for prescribing the conditions subject to which licences may be issued, including in the case of a licence to manufacture conditions 618 that the licensee shall allow any inspector authorised by the licensing authority in that behalf to enter any premises where the manufacture is carried on, and to inspect the process and plant and the process of manufacture and the means employed for standardising and testing the manufactured substance and to take samples thereof;
§ EARL DE LA WARRThe next Amendment is simply to correct a misprint in the Bill.
§
Amendment moved—
Page 4, line 1, leave out ("process") and insert ("premises").—(Earl De La Warr)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§
EARL DE LA WARR moved to insert in subsection 1, after paragraph (f), the following new paragraph:—
(g) for excluding from the operation of this Act, or of any of the provisions thereof, any therapeutic substance intended to be used solely for veterinary purposes.
The noble Earl said: This Amendment is proposed as a result of an agreement between the Minister of Health and the Minister of Agriculture. The object of this Bill is to control the manufacture and sale of therapeutic substances intended for human use, and for human use only.
§
Amendment moved—
Page 4, line 5, at end insert the said new paragraph.—(Earl De La Warr.)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§
EARL DE LA WARR moved to add the following new subsection to the clause:
(3) All regulations made under this section shall be laid before both Houses of Parliament as soon as may be after they are made.
The noble Earl said: It is proposed to insert this Amendment in order to meet a request from one of the large manufacturing firms that due notice should be given of the intention of the Department to add any substance to the Schedule. I think your Lordships will agree that that is only fair.
§
Amendment moved—
Page 4, line 28, at end insert the said new subsection.—(Earl De La Warr.)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ Clause 5, as amended, agreed to.
619§ Clause 6:
§ Offences.
§ 6. If any person—
- (a) manufactures for sale any therapeutic substance to which this Act applies without a licence for the purpose;
§ EARL DE LA WARRThe first Amendment that I have to propose on this clause is really a drafting Amendment.
§
Amendment moved—
Page 4, line 30, after "(a)" insert "being a person who is required by this Act to be licensed in that behalf."—(Earl De La Warr.)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ EARL DE LA WARR had given Notice to move at the end of paragraph (a), to insert "or elsewhere than on premises in respect of which a licence is granted." The noble Earl said: This Amendment is necessary to secure that the paragraph should correspond precisely with Clause 2 (1) and to place it beyond doubt that it is an offence not merely to manufacture without a licence but also to manufacture elsewhere than on premises in respect of which a licence has been granted.
§ EARL DE LA WARRI think your Lordships will agree that the ordinary layman's idea of English is rather different from that of the ordinary lawyer.
§ LORD PARMOORMight I make a suggestion as a lawyer—namely, that the words ought to be "in respect of which a licence is in force."
§ EARL BEAUCHAMPPerhaps as another layman I might point out that really the reason why these words were suggested by the noble Earl in charge of the Bill was that they correspond with some words which appear in subsection (1) of Clause 2.
§ EARL DE LA WARRAll these suggested words really mean exactly the same thing, but if the House would rather have the words "is in force" there is no objection. I beg to move the Amendment therefore in that form.
§
Amendment moved—
Page 4, line 32, at end insert ("on else-where than on premises in respect of which a licence is in force").—(Earl De La Warr.)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ Clause 6, as amended, agreed to.
§ Clauses 7 and 8 agreed to.
§ Schedule agreed to.