§ Order of the Day for the Second Reading read.
§ THE CIVIL LORD OF THE ADMIRALTY (EARL STANHOPE)My Lords, this is a Money Bill with three operative clauses, and I imagine that your Lordships will not wish me to detain you very long. Its purpose is to wind up the Naval Prize Fund and to dissolve the Naval Prize Tribunal. The Tribunal was appointed in 1918, and consisted of the noble and learned Lord, Lord Phillimore, Sir Guy Fleetwood Wilson, and in succession three distinguished Admirals. The principal duties of the Tribunal have been to allot the proceeds of prize between droits of the Crown and droits of Admiralty, and also to allot claims and liabilities which were made by merchants and others against these 1407 two funds. Claims may continue to be made for an indefinite time, and there are still several large ones outstanding, but the Tribunal suggested in 1925 that the fund should be wound up and the Tribunal dissolved. Both the Admiralty and the Treasury felt, however, that there were still claims of such magnitude outstanding that it was very difficult to decide how much the State and how much the Prize Fund would have to pay, but since that time the situation has cleared very considerably and it has now been possible to come to what we believe is likely to be an accurate estimate of what the Prize Fund will have to meet.
Therefore, it is proposed under this Bill that the Prize Fund should transfer to the Treasury a sum of £126,500, and that the Treasury should undertake all claims and liabilities made against the Fund in future. Both Departments believe that this estimate is a perfectly fair one, both to the Prize Fund and to the taxpayer, and we have been assisted all through in making our estimate of what the State is likely to pay by the advice of the Procurator-General. I would like to take this opportunity of paying a tribute to the work done by the Prize Tribunal during the last ten years and particularly by the noble and learned Lord, Lord Phillimore, who presided over its proceedings, which in many cases have been difficult and complicated. I do not think I have anything further to say about the Bill, but if further information is desired I will do my best to provide it. I beg to move.
§ Moved, That the Bill be now read 2a.—(Earl Stanhope.)
§ On Question, Bill read 2a, and committed to a Committee of the Whole House.