Lords Sitting of 30 November 1954

THE QUEEN'S SPEECH
The QUEEN, being seated on the Throne, and attended by Her Officers of State (the Lords being in their robes), commanded the Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod, through the Lord Great Chamberlain, to let the Commons know, "It is Her Majesty's pleasure they attend Her immediately in this House."
Who being come, with their Speaker:
Her Majesty was pleased to speak as follows:
"My Lords and Members of the House of Commons
"In the session which lies before you My Ministers will strive unremittingly to promote the well-being of My People and the peace of the world.
"My Government are convinced that a strong and united Commonwealth can take a leading part in the councils of the nations. They look forward keenly to the meeting of Commonwealth Prime Ministers to be held in London early next year.
"My Ministers will promote the development of the Colonial Empire, and for this purpose will prolong the Colonial Development and 'Welfare Acts and increase the funds available under them. They will also continue to give full support to the Colombo Plan.
"My Government re-affirm their belief that the United Nations Organisation is essential to the furtherance of international concord, and will give it their wholehearted support. They will at the same time co-operate fully in the work of the North Atlantic Alliance, which they regard as vital to the preservation of peace.
"My Government attach the highest importance to maintaining and strengthening close and friendly relations with the United States of America. It is upon this intimate association that world survival depends.
"My Government will continue their efforts to promote security and prosperity in South East Asia and to uphold the Indo-China settlement concluded at Geneva.
"My Government will persevere in their efforts to conclude an Austrian State Treaty.
"In consultation with other Governments concerned, My Government will seek to give early effect to the agreements reached at the recent Conferences in London and Paris, whereby the occupation of Western Germany will end, the German Federal Republic and Italy will accede to the Brussels Treaty, and the German Federal Republic will join the North Atlantic Alliance. My Government trust that these policies, steadfastly pursued in co-operation with other Governments concerned, will so develop the unity and strength of the free nations that

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the essential basis will be established on which an understanding with the Soviet Union may be sought.
"My Forces will continue to make their full contribution to world stability. Their strength on the mainland of Europe will be maintained in accordance with the public undertakings recently given by My Government; and at home a strategic reserve will be developed and measures taken to meet possible new forms of warfare.
"Members of the House of Commons
"The Estimates for public services will be laid before you in due course.
"My Lords and Members of the House of Commons
"My Ministers will continue to encourage the expansion of industry and the full employment of My People.
"In company with other Governments of the Commonwealth, My Government are taking part in the present review of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. In this and other ways My Government will seek to maintain the advance towards a freer system of trade and payments, and to extend the markets for our exports.
"My Ministers will be vigilant in preserving the soundness of the public finances, the control of expenditure and the curb on inflation.
"On these sure foundations of national prosperity My Ministers will find increasing scope for pursuing social policies directed to the happiness and well-being of all My People.
"My Government are very sensible of the difficulties of many of My People who are old age or disablement pensioners. The first five-yearly review of the National Insurance Scheme enables My Ministers to revise its provisions in the light of all the information available about their effects on both this and future generations. They will introduce early legislation to authorise increases in retirement pensions and the other benefits provided for the victims of industrial accidents and diseases, for widows, the sick and the unemployed. There will be corresponding increases in pensions for those disabled in war and for war widows.
"My Ministers will ensure the continuance of a high rate of house-building, for letting and for purchase, and are now able to resume an active campaign to clear the slums.
"Legislation will be laid before you to deal with certain problems connected with requisitioned dwellings and other matters relating to housing.
"My Ministers are greatly concerned at the grievous toll in death and injury that is taken by road accidents, at the inadequacy of our highway system for the ever-increasing volume of traffic, and at the damage done to our national economy by traffic congestion and delays. My Ministers have accordingly decided to embark upon an expanded programme of road construction and improvement, designed both to increase safety on the roads and to promote the freer flow of traffic. The Road Traffic Acts will also be amended to further these aims.
"Legislation will be proposed to authorise an increase in the borrowing powers of the British Transport Commission.
"To provide better education for children and young people, My Ministers will continue to encourage the building and improvement of schools and technical colleges. Special attention will be paid to the provision of secondary schools, village halls and playing fields in the rural areas. In consultation with the teachers and local authorities, My Ministers will prepare a new scheme for ensuring a sound financial basis for teachers' pensions.
"My Government will stimulate the expansion of facilities for higher technological education, so that advances in scientific research may be matched by increased industrial efficiency and production.
"My Ministers recognise that the transition from control to freedom has brought problems for all engaged in farming and kindred industries. They will not relax their efforts to promote the efficient production and marketing of food. These will enable stability for the industry to be combined with the flexibility of a free market so that the consumer may enjoy plentiful supplies, and the producer a fair return.
"My Ministers will continue to foster the interests of the fishing industry, and will introduce a Bill to provide further assistance to the herring industry.
"A Bill will be laid before you to enable My Government to carry out their obligations under the Commonwealth Sugar Agreement, whilst bringing to an end the present system of State trading in sugar.
"In order to relieve pressure of business in My courts of law measures will be laid before you to increase the jurisdiction of the county courts in England and Wales and to set up new criminal courts at Liverpool and Manchester.
"My Ministers will give close attention to the development of health services in factories.
"Legislation will be proposed to enable My Government to accept the Convention adopted by the International Conference on Pollution of the Sea by Oil.
"Legislation will be introduced to amend and consolidate the law relating to crofting and to provide for the appointment of a Crofters' Commission.
"The Report of the Royal Commission on Scottish Affairs has received the close attention of My Ministers and steps are being taken to carry out its recommendations.
"Other measures will be laid before you in due course.
"I pray that the blessing of Almighty God will rest upon your counsels."
Thereafter, Her Majesty withdrew.
House adjourned during pleasure.
House resumed at three of the clock, The LORD CHANCELLOR on the Woolsack.
Prayers
The Lord Colgrain—Sat first in Parliament after the death of his father.

ROLL OF THE LORDS
Garter King of Arms attending, delivered at the Table of the House a List of the Lords Temporal in the Fourth Session of the Fortieth Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
Ordered, That the said List do lie on the Table.

SELECT VESTRIES
Bill, pro forma, read 1a.

ROLL OF THE LORDS
The LORD CHANCELLOR The LORD CHANCELLOR acquainted the House that the Clerk of the Parliaments had prepared a Roll of the Lords; the same was laid on the Table, and ordered to be printed.
ADDRESS IN REPLY TO HER MAJESTY'S MOST GRACIOUS SPEECH
The Queen's Speech reported by The LORD CHANCELLOR.
3.15 p.m.
LORD POLWARTH: My Lords, I beg to move that an humble Address be presented to Her Majesty as followeth:
"Most Gracious Sovereign—We, Your Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, in Parliament assembled, beg leave to thank Your Majesty for the most gracious Speech which Your Majesty has addressed to both Houses of Parliament."
My Lords, may I say how deeply grateful I am to the noble Marquess the Leader of the House for giving me the unexpected privilege of moving this Address. I accept it as no personal compliment; I accept it as an honour to

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Scotland on this Saint Andrew's Day, and, indeed, as a tribute to Her Majesty herself, the uniform of whose Bodyguard for Scotland I am proud to be wearing. If your Lordships will forgive a personal note, I have another cause for personal pride, because to-day is the birthday of my son and heir.
Of course I realise that it is also another birthday. To-day has been a great day for us all, and its emotions and memories will live long in our minds. We watched the time-honoured ceremonial of the Opening of Parliament; but would it have taken place at all but for the man whose eightieth birthday we were celebrating this morning? Sir Winston Churchill is a House of Commons man, and I do not think he would wish for any fulsome compliments from this place. We have already paid him our tribute this morning. The habit of quoting the classics is rather out of fashion in Parliament nowadays, but in his young days it was commonplace, so may I, with some hesitation, commend to your Lordships two lines of Horace, which seem to me to be singularly apt for the greatest statesman of the atomic age:
"Si fractus illabatur orbis,
Impavidum ferient ruinœ,"
which might be freely rendered:
"The fragments of the shattered globe
Would strike him fearless still."
As we heard Her Majesty address us with such dignity and grace I felt a new significance in the age-old ritual. My thoughts went back to the same occasion a year ago and to that day, soon after, when the Queen and her husband went down to London Airport and flew off into the dark and cold of a winter's night over the Atlantic, to arrive next morning in Bermuda, in the sun and warmth, and thus started a tour of the Commonwealth which has done more to weld anew the bonds between us than any statesman or diplomat could ever do. Her Majesty opened her Parliaments in Australia and New Zealand; she was received in her Legislatures from Jamaica to Ceylon. Now we welcome her back to her Parliament in Westminster assembled. But she has not been our only new ambassador. The Duchess of Kent and her daughter have been across the Atlantic. The Duke of Edinburgh has been down North to see for himself some of the great new developments in Canada, and last week
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we welcomed home our beloved Queen Mother who, with her charm and informality, appears to have stormed the hearts even of hard-headed New York. I believe that these journeys of the Royal Family mark a new milestone in the evolution of the Crown. May we at home never be so selfish as to attempt to deny to the members of the Commonwealth their undoubted right to Her presence or to deny Her and Her family that full measure of family life to which they are so truly entitled.
The strength and unity of the Commonwealth is a potent power for peace. Peace is the first thought in the gracious Speech, as indeed it must be in all our minds today. We are thankful for the support which members of the Commonwealth have given to our policies among the nations. We shall welcome their Prime Ministers to London in the New Year. No less important are our relations with the United States. Here I believe that such misunderstandings as there are between us are due largely to ignorance, and that that ignorance would be largely dispelled if there were freer intercourse between the people of the two countries—not merely between statesmen and businessmen but between the ordinary folk. I hope that the Government will take the earliest opportunity possible to make some dollars available so that ordinary people may visit America.
My Lords, it would be presumptuous for someone of my inexperience to try to hold forth on foreign affairs, especially in view of the fact that the whole field was so thoroughly debated by your Lordships a week or so ago. Surely, as the gracious Speech recognises, our one aim must still be to support the United Nations and the North Atlantic Alliance. The recent London and Paris Agreements are a triumph of statesmanship and it is good to hear that they will soon be put into effect. Let us at least be thankful that for the first time for at least twenty-five years the world is without an organised war between States.
But if we are to maintain our position in the world outside we must have a sound internal economy. On the subject of economics I believe it is impossible to be non-controversial, and in any case my noble friend who is to follow me is an industrialist and he will deal with the subject far more ably than I could do—as indeed he will with a number of other

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points covered by the gracious Speech. May I just say that I believe there is a feeling of confidence in our economy both within the country and without. To take only a few signs, there is the continued strength of sterling and there is the recent quite remarkable increase in savings, and that at a time when there are plenty of goods in the shops, brought nearer to everyone's pocket by the attractions of hire purchase. There is the increasing number of American firms who are setting up factories in this country. I am proud to say that of the American factories set up in this country since the war no fewer than 70 per cent. have been established in Scotland, largely due to the efforts of the Scottish Council (Development and Industry).
I welcome the mention in the gracious Speech of a move towards a freer system of payments and exchange. The Governor of the Bank of England put it very well, I think, when he said recently:
"I do not see a great wall behind which sterling is inconvertible, and in front of which it is convertible. Rather do I see a long steeplechase course with fences to be jumped at intervals."
During the past year we have cleared quite a few of those fences—many of them hardly noticed One of the most welcome relaxations has been the freeing of more exchange to enable British capital to be invested in the great new developments in Canada. For too long Canadians and ourselves have looked on and watched them being financed almost entirely by American funds. The mention of the need to increase our exports is timely. Exports this year have, admittedly, been running higher than last, but they have not been increasing. What is more, the recent dock strike may have done damage that will be lasting. Perhaps on the credit side I may be allowed to quote the example of my own local town of Hawick, whose fine knitwear is known the world over. In the year ending last July, the Hawick hosiery industry, with a working force of 3,600 people, exported £3,800,000 worth of goods—over £1,000 worth for every head in the mills. I believe that that is the highest proportion per head of any town in the United Kingdom.
If industry is to compete efficiently in the export field it must have efficient services, and in "services" I include the fuel and power industries and the field
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of transport. Since the war we have spent vast sums to extend the fuel and power industries. We have poured money into power stations, gas works and coalmines. But the roads have had a poor deal. The roads are the country's arteries. The traffic on them is the country's lifeblood, and that lifeblood is flowing more and more slowly. In places, indeed, it is congealing, and, as we all know, when, a clot forms in the blood system one of the consequences may be paralysis; and we cannot afford paralysis of the country's industry. I do not think that any sentence in the gracious Speech will command greater acceptance on all sides of the House than the mention of the Government's intentions for the roads. The problem is far from being easy, whether it concerns the trunk roads or the great cities. But of one thing I am certain; we must form a completely new idea of the scale of capital expenditure which is required.
Roads have had so much publicity lately that we tend to forget the railways, and the important part which they still play in carrying the country's passengers and goods. We have recently approved the Railways Reorganisation Scheme, so it is particularly welcome to find in the gracious Speech that the British Transport Commission's borrowing powers are to be increased, presumably so that the railways can be modernised and re-equipped. The railways are a great service and they have a great tradition, but I sometimes feel that they tend to cling to methods acquired in their Victorian childhood. Capital re-equipment is the first requirement to put them on the rails again—if that is the correct expression. But it must be accompanied by a radical change of thought on the methods of working the railways.
Now I turn from machines to men. Both old age and youth have a place in the gracious Speech, old age on the proposals for increased pensions, and youth in the provisions for education. Decent pensions for all on retirement and in disablement are agreed by all Parties to be an essential part of the Welfare State. I can see no justification for pensions becoming the subject of political strife. Let us all be thankful that we can share our increased prosperity with the old, the infirm, and the sufferers from two world wars. Two points which we must decide,

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as I see it, are how to pay for pensions and when. On the question of how, I believe that we must adhere to the principle of insurance—that to-day's contributions must be built up to meet to-morrow's pensions, but with the increase of the numbers of old people in the country I am afraid that this is bound to mean increased contributions. As to when, I think that we should encourage old people to go on working as long as they are willing and fit to do so, and give them the encouragement of allowing them to earn more before they suffer from cutting or loss of their pensions.
No proposal in the gracious Speech gave me greater pleasure than the mention of secondary education in rural areas, and of village halls and playing fields. There has been much talk about the drift from the land, but, so far, little action. The great majority of country children, when they reach the stage of secondary education, are transported to the town, where they pass some of the most impressionable years of their lives. It is not surprising that they succumb to the lure of the bright lights, especially when their home surroundings lack facilities such as village halls and playing fields can provide. I had the privilege of starting my education in the village school: in those days there was no bus from home to school and back again. I was more fortunate than most, because I rode there on a pony. It may be a Utopian dream, but I should like to see the present system reversed: I should like to see town children transported into the country for at least part of their education. I believe that it would make us a healthier and happier race, and would do much to maintain a prosperous country population, which is so important to our farming industry.
The farming industry is as important to-day as ever it was, and it is good to hear that the Government are not relaxing their efforts in that field. The freedom from controls has brought problems to all. The customer has found some prices higher and others lower. One thing is certain: he has welcomed the greater choice and variety. The farmer has had to get used to a selective market and, so far as livestock is concerned, he has learned that it is quality that pays. Of course, there have been the troubles that
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are inherent in any new order, and for farmers things have not been made easier by a year of the most appalling weather that any of us can remember. If there is still anyone who thinks that the farmer is pampered, I should like to take him to see the blackened hay floating in the flooded fields, the uncut corn on the uplands and, even now, farm workers working in the root fields ankle-deep and knee-deep in mud. I think we should pay tribute to the spirit in which the farmers and farm workers have fought to save the country's crops.
With the rains and the floods, we have had the gales. They have not all been so disastrous as those which caused the tragic loss of life on the Goodwin Sands last week-end, but they have brought danger and hardship to another section of our community—I refer to our sea fishermen. So it is encouraging to find that we are to give them help, particularly those engaged in the herring industry, which is so important in Scotland. In Scotland we have another hardy group of people, the crofters. Crofting is not just a peculiar system of land-holding, although it has its complications: it is a way of life combining the scratching of a living from a few acres of indifferent land with such pursuits as fishing and weaving tweed. In the words of the Report of the Commission of Inquiry into the Crofting Industry, for the most part.
"… these communities maintain a precarious existence on the Atlantic fringe of our industrial society."
Their value to the country as a whole is hard to assess, but the Commission conclude, I think rightly, that these communities can and should be saved. The appointment of a Crofters' Commission to tackle the whole problem, as recommended by the Commission of Inquiry, will be warmly welcomed throughout Scotland.
And Scotland claims the concluding place in the gracious Speech with the measures recommended by the Royal Commission on Scottish Affairs. There has perhaps been some disappointment in Scotland that the Commission's recommendations for legislative action were not more numerous or more drastic, though the principal one, the transfer of responsibility for the roads to the Secretary of State for Scotland, will be warmly welcomed by us all, especially if our

13
present Secretary of State is as successful in getting us a fair share as he has been in other fields. But within their terms of reference, I do not see that the Commission could have recommended much more, for they were specifically barred from considering Parliamentary devolution. They conclude, I think rightly, twat the demand for Home Rule is far from universal, I am reminded of a slogan I saw painted on a wall alongside a road in central Scotland. When I first passed it, it read in large white letters: "Home Rule for Scotland." When I passed it again a month later, it read: "Home Rule for Scotland and be ruled by Glasgow crooks and Edinburgh lawyers."
I think the real virtue of the Report is in its painstaking exposition of the facts about government and Scotland, and in the breath of inquiry which it has blown into some of the dusty corners. In preparing evidence for the Commission, quite a number of Departments and their officials must have undergone some salutary heart-searching on the subject of the exercise of their powers in relation to Scotland, and I do not think many of them will henceforth be likely to treat Scotland as just another region of the United Kingdom, but will remember, in the words of the Report, that
"She is a partner in a voluntary union of two proud peoples."
And if any of my countrymen should belittle Scotland's voice in Parliament, let, them remember that amongst us we number the noble and learned Viscount who sits on the Woolsack and the right honourable Member who occupies the Chair in another place.
This Session may be the last of this Parliament, or it may not; but, in either case, when the measures forecast in the gracious Speech have become law, I believe that our noble Leader and his team will be able to look back on the years of this Parliament and say with good cause, "We have done a good job." Before long the storm clouds of another Election will be massing on the horizon and the air will be charged with Party feeling. So, with particular cause, let us echo tonight the traditional closing words of the gracious Speech:
"May the blessing of Almighty God rest upon your councils."
I beg to move.
Moved, That an humble Address be presented to Her Majesty as followeth—
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"Most Gracious Sovereign—We, Your Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, in Parliament assembled, beg leave to thank Your Majesty for the most gracious Speech which Your Majesty has addressed to both Houses of Parliament."—(Lord Polwarth.)
3.33 p.m.
LORD JESSEL: My Lords, it is my privilege to second the Motion which has been so ably moved by my noble friend Lord Polwarth. I enjoyed listening to his speech, in spite of the knowledge that my own ordeal was pending. May I also say what an honour I deem it to have been asked by the noble Marquess the Leader of the House to undertake this task? I come from a political family. Both my grandfathers were members of another place, and my father devoted a long life to public service. So, as a comparatively new Member of your Lordships' House, who for most of this year has been unable to attend here, I especially appreciate this unexpected honour, which undoubtedly will encourage me in future to make the best contribution of which I am capable to the business of this House. It is generally agreed that one's best friends are one's most severe critics and, although not a Scotsman myself, I am quite happy that to-day is the feast of St. Andrew, because many of my contemporaries are therefore not here, but are engaged on the playing fields of a great school, no doubt watching their offspring win the battles of the future.
Last year the mover of the humble Address gave our heartfelt good wishes to our Queen on the eve of her journey to far away parts of the Commonwealth and Empire. What a magnificent success that tour was, and what great pleasure it gave to the people of the lands that Her Majesty visited, has already been referred to by my noble friend the mover of the humble Address. I was in hospital at the time, and two of the nurses who attended me were from the Commonwealth, one from Australia and the other from New Zealand. I was struck by the passionate interest with which they followed every detail of Her Majesty's journey, and, fortunately for me, perhaps, Her Majesty in fact visited both their home towns. I am glad to see that the, mention of the Commonwealth and Colonial Empire occupies an even more

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prominent place in the gracious Speech than usual. Like the mover of the humble Address, I welcome the meeting of Commonwealth Prime Ministers to be held next year. For here I am on the side of the planners. I believe that Great Britain and the Commonwealth and Empire could, in time, form a self-supporting economic unit, and that, as a result, the dollar problem could become a memory of the past. Industrialists who have pioneered Commonwealth and Empire territories have told me of the immense good will encountered and willing co-operation given.
I welcome also the announcement that the Colonial Development and Welfare Acts are to be prolonged and that more funds are to be made available under them. Up to now, I think it is fair to say that the funds have been used more for social than for economic schemes. The wisdom of this is open to question: the result of social improvements may be large population increases which are not counter-balanced by the expansion in economic wealth. I suggest that the emphasis should be rather more on food and better communications. I note that continued support is to be given to the Colombo Plan. In this respect the Governments of India, Pakistan and Ceylon have been the chief beneficiaries of the United Kingdom money spent on development schemes. But let us remember that United Kingdom funds are also spent on technical assistance programmes which result in a most useful exchange of experts and trainees; and this, I am sure, will greatly increase in the future, to the advantage of all the countries concerned.
My noble friend Lord Polwarth has touched on foreign affairs. I agree with him that the recent London and Paris Agreements should be ratified, and ratified speedily, by all the nations concerned. I myself have always favoured allowing Germany to rearm, under proper controls, for with her new factories and abundance of manpower she should play her part in the defence of the West. She would not have been able during the past year to become such a serious competitor in traditional British markets had she undertaken her share of the rearmament programme of free Europe. The conduct of foreign affairs
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is in good hands, and I am confident that during the coming months the fine reputation of our Foreign Secretary will in no way be diminished.
When we turn to the references in the gracious Speech to home affairs, I feel that we should, first of all, remind ourselves of the immense improvement which has occurred in the economic situation during the year. In practically every branch of industry output and sales have achieved record levels. Not only have the goods been made but, still more important, they have been sold. During the first nine months of 1954, for instance, exports, with which we are so much concerned, were 8 per cent. greater in volume than in the same period for 1953, and in fact, were the highest ever recorded. Motor cars, steel, aircraft, cement, chemicals and engineering—to mention a few outstanding examples—have all contributed to this happy result. I know well that some ungenerous people are bound to say that this favourable situation can be attributed a great deal to what economists call the "favourable terms of trade"—in fact, to good luck. I do not myself subscribe to this view. After all, it is the consistently good putter who sinks the putts, and it is the skilful bridge player who seems to hold all the cards all the time. I think that Her Majesty's Government are to be congratulated on their efforts and on their policies, which have restored world confidence in the future and created conditions which have made possible even a further improvement in the standard of living for the people of this island.
I would remind your Lordships that unemployment has continued to fall since the 1952 peak, and it is at present less than 1 per cent. of the total working population. At the same time, earnings have kept ahead of prices, which supports my previous contention that under the wise direction of the present Government the conditions for the mass of the people of this country have improved. Still, it is generally agreed that certain sections of the community are not in such a happy position, and I therefore welcome the fact that legislation is to be introduced to increase pensions for various classes of these less fortunate people. Nevertheless, I trust that Her Majesty's Government will bear in mind the fact, on which my noble friend Lord Polwarth

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has touched, that the proportion of older people in the population is bound to rise steeply in the next fifty years. I well know that a programme of indiscriminate payment of benefits, alike to those who need them and those who do not, is favoured in some quarters; but I suggest that, in view of the existing burden of taxation, such a policy would be quite wrong at this moment.
The gracious Speech, as one would expect, stresses the continuing need for a high rate of building of houses, both for letting and for sale. I hope that the building societies will co-operate in taking advantage of the Government's recent offer to guarantee the loan up to 90 per cent. of the value of a house. The gracious Speech also mentions slum clearance, which is a problem of all large cities—even Moscow. In this country a great deal of responsibility is being delegated to the local authorities, whose vigour and efficiency in each case are bound to vary. I trust that the Minister will keep a watchful eye on them, and that he will stimulate those who are not getting on with their job. The local authorities must also play their part in speeding up the de-requisitioning of houses and land. I am glad to see that the gracious Speech refers to the problem of requisitioned buildings because, in spite of the Government's declared intention not to seek the renewal of its requisitioning powers in respect of houses, it is proposing to maintain its powers in respect of industrial premises. In the United Kingdom to-day there are still industrial undertakings which have not been able to recover possession of premises requisitioned several years ago. Yet in some instances these premises are being wed solely for storage purposes or offices. I suggest that this situation merits further attention. May I add that I consider the building of new factories is also a matter of urgency. We can still see in Great Britain some dreadful old factories in which it must be impossible to manufacture competitively and in which the working conditions are far from ideal Factory building to-day is very expensive, and I hope that, by the use of new methods and designs, the cost will be, reduced and industry encouraged to replace these obsolete buildings. The Chancellor of the Exchequer certainly
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gave some encouragement to this policy in his last Budget.
Last year the seconder of the humble Address dealt in some detail with the problem of rural housing and the necessity for giving the farm labourer in his cottage the amenities of life. I suggest that the capital cost of bringing electricity—which was one of the things the seconder mentioned—to a cottage even a short distance is still very high. As a matter of fact, I speak from experience. The technical reasons were explained to me, but I was not quite convinced. I hope that further consideration will be given to this matter by the regional electricity boards.
I very much welcome the reference to technological education. Higher productivity, we all know, is more than ever essential in industry, and it is the technologists who can help the management and the work people to bring down costs and keep the products of this country competitive in world markets. This is an unending struggle. New ideas are needed all the time. The pace is hot, and industry needs a body of well-trained men to back it up, to take advantage of and apply the results of pure scientific research. I am not quite clear as to the methods contemplated by the words in the gracious Speech where it says:
"stimulate facilities for higher technological education."
I presume the intention is to enlarge existing technical colleges and also build new ones. But may I give one word of warning? It is no use having the buildings without the teachers; therefore, I hope conditions will be made sufficiently attractive to obtain the right type of teacher.
I am interested in the proposed measures to relieve pressure in the courts. I understand that at the present day a case in the High Court may be delayed nearly a year from the time of the issue of the writ to the hearing of the action. Some of these actions could equally well be tried in the county courts, and I presume it is intended to enlarge the scope of their jurisdiction. Since the existing upper limit of the amount recoverable in a county court was last fixed in 1938, the value of money has changed considerably, and I feel sure that it is the intention of Her Majesty's Government to increase

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this amount substantially and bring it into line with modern conditions. At the same time, we must be careful not to overload the county courts but to see that they can cope with their increased burden efficiently. It may be that the number of county court judges will have to be increased. The references to the setting up of criminal courts in Liverpool and Manchester brings back memories for me. Nearly thirty years ago as Judge's Marshal I spent three months in those two great cities. I was well paid and well fed, and the work was most congenial. I learnt a good deal about crime, and I also observed the noble and learned Viscount the Lord Chancellor laying the foundations of his successful legal career. I await with interest the announcement of the details of the constitution of these new criminal courts. By the way, if Birmingham, in spite of her larger population, is annoyed at being left out, she must do something about her crime—take measures to stimulate it!
Further attention to the health services in factories is also promised. In this field I think the country to-day has a fine record, but further improvement is always possible and desirable, the only danger being that of too large a number of inspectors, who may be tempted to justify their existence by frequent and sometimes unnecessary visits. I am also glad to see that it is proposed in the gracious Speech that Great Britain should accept the convention adopted by the International Conference on Pollution of the Sea by Oil. As a nation under whose flag so many tankers operate, it was only right that we should give a lead in this pressing matter. Many a day by the sea has been ruined by the oily filth washed up on the beaches, and lovers of birds—which most of us are—cannot help but be distressed by the sufferings inflicted by the polluted waters.
There are one or two further matters which I should have liked to see in the gracious Speech, but this is a non-controversial occasion and I will say no more on this aspect. Rather let us be grateful that we are on the threshold of a year of promise, and that we have an ever-youthful Prime Minister and a Queen who is beloved by all Her subjects. My Lords, I beg to second.
3.59 p.m.
EARL JOWITT: My Lords, I rise to move that this debate be now adjourned. That is, I think, the customary Motion, and it gives me the opportunity to express—and I can express it on behalf of your Lordships in all quarters of the House—our sense of indebtedness to the noble Lords who have respectively moved and seconded this Motion. I can say with the utmost sincerity that I think they have acquitted themselves in the exceedingly difficult task extraordinarily well. It is, I suppose, rather an ordeal, even for a Parliamentarian so experienced as the noble Lord, Lord Polwarth—because it is no earthly good his trying to pretend that this was a maiden speech or asking for any sort of mercy which he cannot hope to get. So, as I say, even for him it was rather an ordeal. It is said that "Fine feathers make fine birds." It is nice to see the noble Lord arrayed as he is to-day, and I can say with great sincerity that he has done his task really excellently. In what he said about Her Majesty, in what he said about the Royal Family, the Queen Mother and the Duke of Edinburgh, he most certainly spoke for all of us. We are all deeply conscious of the fact that we owe them more than we can possibly state or repay. And what a happy thing it is that, in this changing world, in this unqualified democracy of ours, we have that ancient institution and those ancient ceremonies which remind us of the link we have still with the past, the traditions which have been handed down to us, and which we shall, in due time, hand down to the children who come after us! In that connection, may I wish the noble Lord the mover of this Address and his son "Many happy returns of the day."
On one particular matter I should like to express my entire concurrence with what the noble Lord said. It is quite obvious that friendship with the United States is the rock on which we have to build. It is not, of course, an exclusive friendship, and I am sure that it is not so meant—our friendship with France, for instance, is another thing which we should hold very dear. But our friendship with the United States does not mean a flatulent adulation, the one of the other; nor need we be afraid of healthy and sincere criticism, all the more so because, when we find that there are things about which we differ and compare

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them in volume and weight with the things on which we agree, we find that the great underlying principles on which we agree so far outweigh the comparatively trivial things on which we differ that there is really no harm in stating our differences, so long as we state them honestly and fairly—at least, that is my point of view.
I happen to be rather interested in travel. I had the honour to succeed the late Lord Derby as President of our Travel Association. When the noble Lord said, as he did say, that the Government could do something to encourage visits from people in this country to the United States, as they are encouraging, through the Travel Association, visits the other way, I entirely agree with him. It is not enough that mere eminent statesmen should go and make speeches. What we want is the common people of each country to get to know each other better. That will be the most secure bond that we can possibly have.
The noble Lord, Lord Polwarth, need be in no fear about the lack of the influence of Scotland in Parliament. He speaks to us as a Scottish Representative Peer. I understand that there are fifteen Peers of Scotland who are not represented in this House and there are sixteen who are, so that each Scottish Peer's voice and vote is worth twice as much as the vote or votes of any Englishman. There is therefore no need to doubt the weight which we attach to Scotland. That completes all that I have to say about the noble Lord, Lord Polwarth. I have looked up his history. I found nothing at all discreditable, otherwise I should have brought it out. I find that he is a member of a most distinguished profession—he is a chartered accountant—and he is a Director of the Bank of Scotland. I found (and this is the only thing that did make me a little doubtful about it) that amongst the supporters of his coat of arms there is a mermaid; but in heraldic words the description of the mermaid is "All proper."
So far as the noble Lord, Lord Jessel, is concerned, he is a member of the Bar. Most of us—many of the older among us, at any rate—knew his father, either in this House or in another place. If ever there was a man who was keenly concerned with everything about London it was the noble Lord's father. Having had the great honour of being a friend of his
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father, I can only say that, if his father could have heard his speech to-day, I am sure he would have been proud of his son. He has had, as we all know, an illness which has kept him away from the House for some part of this year. I sincerely hope that, after he is completely restored to health, we shall find him often taking part in our debates. We probably shall not altogether agree on our point of view, and although his speech to-day was, of course, strictly non-controversial, I could not help feeling that I could have guessed the Party to which he belonged. Be that as it may, I, for my part, thoroughly enjoyed his speech. I am bound to say that I envy the noble Marquess the Leader of the House. I know that I should not envy anybody. I do not envy him his oxen or his asses, but I do envy him the fact that he has an apparently unlimited supply of noble Lords who can, with great skill and charm, move and second this Address. That is all I desire to say now in moving this Motion. I desire once more to express my gratitude, and the gratitude of all noble Lords who sit on this side of the House, for the manner in which this task has been performed by the two noble Lords.
Moved, That the debate be now adjourned.—(Earl Jowitt.)
4.7 p.m.
VISCOUNT SAMUEL: My Lords, I rise to support this Motion, which is part of the ancient ceremony that attends the opening of a new Session. In doing so, I will not refer in any way to the topics embraced in Her Majesty's gracious Speech—that is for the debate tomorrow, in which I hope to have the privilege of taking part—but will limit myself to the speeches of the mover and seconder of the humble Address. Stress has been laid by the noble and learned Earl who has just spoken on the difficulty of their task—indeed, the seconder spoke of his coming experience as "an ordeal." After hearing, in one House or the other, about forty Addresses moved and seconded, I can well understand the feeling, possibly of trepidation, with which younger members of either House must approach this duty.
It is, indeed, a difficult one. They have necessarily to deal with a variety of political subjects, but they must be on no account partisan or controversial. They have to be serious without being dull.

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They have to give us, if possible, the light touch, but must on no account be flippant or jocose; and while they must undoubtedly tell the truth, and nothing but the truth, there are occasions on which, if they told the whole truth, they would get into what the Prime Minister calls "a bit of a scrape." So that sometimes we listen to the mover and seconder with somewhat the same feeling as people watch a tight-rope walker going across Niagara Falls—a feeling of sympathy but of considerable apprehension, and of great relief when the other side is reached. That, however, was not our feeling to-day. It was apparent from the very beginnings of the speeches, both that of the mover and that of the seconder, that here we had speakers of ability who possessed the great virtue of lucidity and, also, of audibility—something which is always welcome in your Lordships' House.
The noble Lord, Lord Polwarth, is one of the younger Members here, although he has already been, I think, nearly ten years a Representative Scottish Peer, and he will, I am sure, be a valuable participant in our debates. He comes of an ancient lineage, and his ancestors have been connected with this Parliament, in both Houses, for many generations. I think it is rarely since the Act of Union that there has not been a Lord Polwarth among the Scottish Representative Peers, and we hope that in due course the present Master of Polwarth will succeed to carry on the line. The noble Lord, Lord Jessel, as has been said by the noble and learned Earl, Lord Jowitt, is the son of a father who was very well known to, and highly respected by, all of us. He rendered valuable public service not only in Parliament but also in municipal life, and his son who comes to us now is evidently a man of a wide range of interests. We may hope that both these noble Lords will be recruits to the all too small band of regular attendants in your Lordships' House, who do their best to uphold its usefulness and traditions.
4.12 p.m.
THE LORD PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL (THE MARQUESS OF SALISBURY): My Lords, the Labour and Liberal Opposition have already paid a tribute to the mover and seconder of the humble Address on the way they have performed their duties; I rise merely to
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add my meed of congratulation. As the noble Viscount, Lord Samuel, has just said, the task that is set to the mover and seconder is never an easy one—in fact, I imagine that it is about the hardest that can confront a parliamentarian. First, they are presented with the gracious Speech which incorporates the policy of Her Majesty's Government for the forthcoming year, and they are asked to confine their remarks to it. Then they are told that they must on no account say anything in the slightest degree controversial. To anyone who has not had any experience of politics, it might seem that that is completely impossible—that either they must approve of what is said in the gracious Speech or they must disapprove; and that, in either case, to some extent they are bound to be controversial. As long experience has shown, the only way in which they can deal with so intractable a problem is to adopt a rather special style. They have to be, so far as possible, detached, or at any rate urbane, in their comments on the topics of the day. In that way alone can they hope to avoid the pitfalls which yawn before them.
In this particular style, which is not by any means a simple one, both noble Lords have to-day acquitted themselves remarkably well. Neither of them, of course, is a newcomer to your Lordships' House. Both have given a taste of their quality to your Lordships in earlier speeches, but I am sure we shall all agree that on this particular occasion, a difficult occasion, they have excelled. The noble Lord, Lord Polwarth, spoke of the dignity and grace of the Prime Minister's address this morning. I am sure that we shall all agree with him there, but I felt that those words might well be applied also to his own speech. The same is true of the noble Lord, Lord Jessel, who followed him and who, I thought, was equally happy in his approach to his task. The noble and learned Earl, Lord Jowit, has already spoken with moving eloquence on their references to the Royal Family, and in what he said I know that he speaks for us all, in whatever part of the House we sit. That is equally true of what has been said about the Commonwealth and Empire.
So far as the rest of the speeches is concerned, the House will know that both these noble Lords occupy a distinguished position in the business world. They speak, therefore, with special authority on

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matters coming within the sphere of finance and industry, and I am sure that we should all ponder what they said on those subjects. The noble Lord, Lord Polwarth, covered a wide field in the wise and thoughtful speech to which we listened this afternoon. I personally was particularly glad to hear what he said about the economic angle of the reference in the gracious Speech to roads. Some people still think that good roads are a luxury which we may be able to afford but can quite easily do without. As I think all your Lordships know (we have had a good many debates on the subject), good roads are a necessity nowadays, just as good railways were a necessity in the nineteenth century; and both have a vital part to play to-day in increasing the wealth of the country. I was extremely relieved to hear the broadly favourable references in the noble Lord's speech to the Government's policy for Scotland. I have no doubt that he, as a Scotsman, would have liked a good deal more, but clearly he thought that at least we were moving in the right direction—and that, coming from a Scotsman, I thought was not too bad.
Equally, there was a great deal of food for thought in what was said to us by the noble Lord, Lord Jessel. He had criticisms to make of the present position, but equally he had suggestions to make for curing the matters he criticised. All those suggestions were of a constructive and practical character. In particular, as Lord President, I was glad to hear his reference to technology. We are to have a debate on this subject in the near future, and I am certain that nobody can overestimate the importance of technology at the present time. Indeed, I thought the whole approach of Lord Jessel's speech, whether it dealt with foreign or with home affairs, was both positive and sanguine; and these are qualities which, I should imagine, are as important in an industrialist as they are in a politician.
My Lords, I do not want to develop these remarks into a debate on the gracious Speech. All these matters are to be further discussed by your Lordships during the next two days. It only remains for me to congratulate both noble Lords once more on notable performances. I am sure we shall all agree that they have both added to the already considerable reputation which they have
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here, and I hope that, when their other duties make it possible, they will come again. We shall all welcome further contributions from them. I have great pleasure, on behalf of Her Majesty's Government, in accepting the Motion which was moved by the noble and learned Earl, that the debate be now adjourned.
On Question, Motion agreed to, and debate adjourned accordingly.

CHAIRMAN OF COMMITTEES
4.18 p.m.
THE MARQUESS OF SALISBURY: My Lords, I beg to move that the Earl of Drogheda be appointed to take the Chair in all Committees of this House for this Session.
Moved accordingly, and, on Question, Motion agreed to nemine dissentiente.
Committee for Privileges—Appointed.
Committee for the Journals—Appointed.
Appeal Committee—Appointed.
Stoppages in the Streets—Order to prevent, renewed.

BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
4.19 p.m.
THE MARQUESS OF SALISBURY: My Lords, I beg to move to resolve that whenever during the present Session of Parliament the House stands adjourned, and it appears to the satisfaction of the Lord Chancellor (or, if the Lord Chancellor is absent, to the satisfaction of the Lord Chairman of Committees after consultation with Her Majesty's Government) that the public interest requires that the House should meet at any earlier time during such adjournment, the Lord Chancellor or the Lord Chairman of Committees, as the case may be, may give notice to the Peers that he is so satisfied, and thereupon the House shall meet at the time stated in such Notice, and shall transact its business as if it had been duly adjourned to that time.
Moved accordingly, and, on Question, Motion agreed to.
House adjourned at twenty minutes past four o'clock.