EXPIRING LAWS CONTINUANCE BILL. (Hansard, 17 December 1935)

§ LORD TEMPLEMORE
My Lords, as your Lordships are aware, the Bill to 240 which I ask the House to give a Second Reading this afternoon is what I may term a hardy annual. It continues certain useful pieces of legislation which would otherwise expire and must be passed by December 31 in each year. There is very little I need say about this particular Bill except to inform your Lordships that the number of Acts to be continued is eleven this year as against twelve last year. Two Acts have dropped out—namely, the Statutory Undertakings (Temporary Increase of Charges) Act, 1918, relating to tramway undertakings, and the Ministry of Food (Continuance) Act, 1920, relating to Part III of the Sale of Food Order, 1921. Part of Section 3 of the Public Works Facilities Act—No. 10 of the Schedule—has been also omitted. One Act has been added —namely, the Debts Clearing Offices and Import Restrictions Act, 1934. Your Lordships may remember that this Act, which was passed in June of last year and is due to expire on June 30, 1936, was passed in order to enable this country to set up a clearing office in a case where a foreign country either restricted or prohibited payment of debts due to this country. So far, His Majesty's Government have not found it necessary to set up these clearing offices. They have succeeded in making arrangements about payments with a number of foreign countries, the most important of which—namely, those with the Argentine and Germany—are working very satisfactorily. But the time has not yet come when the Government feel they can dispense with this piece of legislation. which they wish to have at hand in case of need, and therefore they propose to continue the Act until December 31, 1937.
There is one matter to which I think I ought to refer. I am sorry that my noble friend the Lord Chairman is absent, still more because I believe he is ill. I hope he will soon be back with us again. But I feel I must say a word regarding Act No. 10 in the Schedule, the Public Works Facilities Act, 1930, to the inclusion of which he took exception last year and also in 1933. I have an idea that if he had been here to-day he would have been on his feet as soon as I sat down, once more drawing attention to the inclusion of this Act. Unfortunately the necessity for this Act is still in existence, mainly as regards the Air Ministry. 241 It is the only Act by which the Government at the present moment can acquire sites for civil aviation, and it is also of great use to the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Health.
I was reading the debate which took place on this Bill last year, and I observe that my noble friend Lord Stanhope, who was then answering for the Department I now have the honour to represent, expressed the hope flat the Secretary of State for Air might he able to introduce a measure for acquiring civil aerodromes and establishing powers in permanent form during last Session. As your Lordships know, last Session was very full of work, and I have to say that owing to pressure of business it was not found possible to introduce this legislation. But I can also say this, that in the Air Ministry a Bill is now actually in preparation, and my noble friend the Secretary of State for Air, if he were present, would bear me out when I say that he hopes very much that this will be passed into law during the Session of 1936. I am also informed that the matter has been very carefully considered—it is a rather tiresome phrase to use, but in this case it really means what it says—by the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Health.

§ LORD JESSEL
Under what Act does this come?

§ LORD TEMPLEMORE
It comes under Act No. 10 in the Schedule, the Public Works Facilities Act. I can only express my regret to the Lord Chairman, and I hope he will read to-morrow, in the OFFICIAL REPORT, that it has not been found possible to put through the Bill to which I referred, but that we have every hope of putting it through this year. Then, as regards the Air Ministry, there should be no longer any need to keep the Public Works Facilities Act in the Expiring Laws Continuance Bill in the future. I think there is no more. I need say about the Bill, and I beg to move.

§ LORD STANMORE
My Lords, your Lordships will regret that the Chairman of Committees is net able to be in his place to-day, but I am glad to say the cause is not a serious one. He is laid 242 up with a severe cold, and is no doubt a victim of this weather. I feel certain that had he been here lie would have wished to say something on this question in spite of the explanation given by my noble friend Lord Templemore. On his behalf I should like to welcome what has been said, and in the circumstances I shall not make the protest I thought of making.