§ LORD SNELLMy Lords, on behalf of my noble friend Lord Munster, I beg to move the Motion which stands on the Paper in his name. The purpose of the Motion is adequately expressed in the words of the Motion itself.
§ Moved, That an humble Address be presented to His Majesty in pursuance of subsection (1) of Section eleven of the Emergency Powers (Defence) Act, 1939, praying that the said Act as amended by any subsequent enactment be continued in force for a further period of one year beginning with the twenty-fourth day of August, nineteen hundred and forty-three. —(Lord Snell.)
§ LORD NATHANMy Lords, this of course is a formal matter. I intervene only to raise a point because there is no other opportunity of doing so, and it is one which, if the noble Lord opposite is not able to deal with it, perhaps the Lord Chancellor would be kind enough to give it some consideration. It is this. Under the Emergency Powers Act a very large number of regulations and orders have come into existence amounting in all to a very great bulk indeed. I have not had an opportunity of verifying the numbers, but I have it in my mind that the 604 number is about a thousand. I know from my own experience and observation that the physical bulk is very great; in fact I have a set of them myself extending—I do not think I exaggerate—to a height of several feet. From time to time His Majesty's Government publishes a consolidated index to the regulations, but from the point of view of the commercial community and the practitioner that, while useful, is scarcely adequate. In order to meet the difficulties of the situation the suggestion which I would ask the noble Lord opposite to consider and perhaps be good enough to convey to the proper quarter is this, that periodically His Majesty's Government, in addition to issuing a consolidated index, should issue consolidated regulations. The present practice of having new regulations referring by numbers to existing regulations, some of which cover a long period of time and a variety of subjects, is extremely inconvenient in practice, and I think that His Majesty's Government will be conferring a real public benefit if it were found possible to issue, say, every three months or whatever interval of time may be necessary, sets of consolidated regulations. It is my recollection that that was done in the course of the last war, with very great public convenience.
§ LORD SNELLMy Lords, the noble Lord will understand that I cannot give a decision on that matter at this point, but I will undertake to convey the suggestion he has made to the proper quarter.
§ On Question, Motion agreed to: the said Address to be presented to His Majesty by the Lords with White Staves.