HL Deb 23 March 1937 vol 104 cc772-7

Amendments reported (according to Order).

Clause 1:

Establishment of agricultural wages committees and an Agricultural Wages Board.

1.—(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act the Department of Agriculture for Scotland (in this Act referred to as the Department) shall, as soon as may be, divide Scotland into districts and establish an agricultural wages committee for each district, and an Agricultural Wages Board for Scotland, to be called the Scottish Agricultural Wages Board.

(3) The Department may, if they think it expedient, from time to time vary the boundaries and number of the districts into which Scotland is divided under subsection (1) of this section and may make such provision as is necessary in consequence of any such variation, with regard to the establishment of committees for the districts affected by the variation

THE UNDER-SECRETARY OF STATE FOR WAR (LORD STRATHCONA AND MOUNT ROYAL) moved, in subsection (1), after "as soon as may be," to insert "by order." The noble Lord said: My Lords, as far as the Amendments on the Paper in my name are concerned they all really hang together, except that in line 19, to which I shall refer later when we come to it. Briefly their effect is that the division of Scotland into districts for the purpose of wage regulation shall be done by an order of the Department of Agriculture for Scotland, which will be laid before Parliament and be subject to the negative Resolution procedure. By the Amendments proposed in Clause 1, subsection (3), any subsequent changes will be subject to the same procedure, and will be further conditional upon the assent of the wages committees who may be concerned.

I will explain as clearly as I can the reasons why the Government have decided upon this procedure rather than that suggested at the Committee stage of this Bill by the noble Lord, Lord Saltoun, of which the effect would have been to schedule the districts in the Bill itself. Your Lordships will recall that on the Committee stage I announced that the Department of Agriculture for Scotland would immediately invite the Scottish agricultural organisations (representing both farmers and workers) to confer with them in regard to this and other matters arising out of the Bill. The discussions have taken place, and in the course of them the Department found that both parties were emphatic on the point that as much flexibility as possible should be preserved in regard to future variation. As the House is aware the number of districts that the Government have in mind is twelve. It is quite impossible, without largely increasing that number, to secure completely homogeneous districts. It is undesirable on financial grounds to subdivide indefinitely, and there is really no need for a large number of districts when regard is paid to the powers of a committee under Clause 2, subsection (2), to deal separately with special classes and special areas within the district. At the same time it is clearly desirable, from the point of view of simplicity in working, that the districts should be as homogeneous within themselves as possible.

At the beginning we have no choice but to proceed by trial and error. The Department hope to avoid error as far as possible, but they are faced with a number of suggestions which from the nature of the case are mutually incompatible. Further consultations with the agricultural bodies will take place, and the first determination will be made of course with every care. But, even so, subsequent adjustments may well be necessary in the light of experience, and in these circumstances the Government think it undesirable to enshrine the first determination of districts in the Act of Parliament. I beg to move.

Amendment moved— Page 1, line 8, after ("as soon as may be") insert ("by order").—(Lord Strathcona and Mount Royal).

LORD SALTOUN

My Lords, I would like to thank the noble Lord for the way in which he has met us on this and other Amendments, and indeed for the way in which he has met us on all the points raised during the whole course of the debates on the Bill.

On Question, Amendment agreed to.

LORD STRATHCONA AND MOUNT ROYAL

My Lords, the next Amendment is consequential. I beg to move.

Amendment moved—

Page 1, line 9, after ("and") insert ("shall").—(Lord Strathcona and Mount Royal).

On Question, Amendment agreed to.

LORD STRATHCONA AND MOUNT ROYAL moved, in subsection (3), to leave out "may" and after "expedient" to insert "may on receipt of resolutions in that behalf passed by the several committees concerned." The noble Lord said: My Lords, this Amendment is to carry out a pledge we gave at the Committee stage to put into legal form an Amendment moved by the noble Lord, Lord Saltoun, which we were glad to accept in principle.

Amendment moved—

Page 1, line 19, leave out ("may") and after ("expedient") insert ("may on receipt of resolutions in that behalf passed by the several committees concerned").—(Lord Strathcona and Mount Royal).

On Question, Amendment agreed to.

LORD STRATHCONA AND MOUNT ROYAL

My Lords, the next two Amendments are consequential. I beg to move.

Amendments moved—

Page 1, line so, after ("from time to time") insert ("by order")

Page 1, line 25, at end, insert the following new subsection: ("(4) Every order made by the Department under subsection (1) or subsection (3) of this section shall be laid before both Houses of Parliament forthwith, and if an Address to His Majesty is agreed to by either House of Parliament within the next subsequent twenty-eight days on which that House has sat after any such order is laid before it praying that the order may be annulled, it shall thenceforth he void but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder or the making of a new order").—(Lord Strathcona and Mount Royal.)

On Question, Amendments agreed to.

Schedule:

    cc775-7
  1. SCHEDULE. 781 words
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