HL Deb 04 May 1965 vol 265 cc821-4

2.46 p.m.

Order of the Day read for the consideration of the Third Report from the Select Committee.

The Committee's Report was as follows:

In its Second Report, agreed to by the House on Tuesday, 30th March last, the Committee reported that it had considered the Statement on the Palace of Westminster made by the Lord Privy Seal on Tuesday, 23rd March (Hansard, cols. 524 ff.), and had appointed a Sub-Committee to consider and report upon the administrative problems of the House arising out of that Statement, and to make recommendations.

The Sub-Committee has met on four occasions and has examined the "housekeeping" functions exercised by the Lord Great Chamberlain on behalf of the House and has reported and made recommendations.

Having considered the Report of the Sub-Committee the Committee recommend as follows: —

1. That, notwithstanding any previous order of the House, the control of the accommodation and services in that part of the Palace and its precincts now occupied by or on behalf of the House of Lords and at present exercised by the Lord Great Chamberlain be exercised in future by the House of Lords Offices Committee.

2. That the Offices Committee appoint a Sub-Committee, to be named the Administration Committee, to exercise on behalf of the Committee the functions of control referred to above.

3. That the Sub-Committee consist of the Chairman of Committees (as Chairman), the Chief Whips of the three main political parties, the Chairmen (for the time being) of the Sub-Committees on the Refreshment Department and the Library; and up to four more members, one of whom should be a woman, to be chosen by the Offices Committee from amongst its own members; the Sub-Committee to have power to co-opt any other Peer whether a member of the Offices Committee or not.

4. That the Sub-Committee have full power to act on behalf of the Offices Committee, subject only to an obligation to refer major questions of policy to the Offices Committee for decision; the choice of such questions to be within the discretion of the Chairman; the Sub-Committee to report to the Offices Committee from time to time; the quorum of the Sub-Committee to be four.

5. That the Sub-Committee appoint an agent to carry out on its behalf the functions of control referred to in 1 above; and that Captain K. L. Mackintosh be entrusted with these duties in addition to his existing duties as Secretary to the Lord Great Chamberlain, Yeoman Usher of the Black Rod and Serjeant-at-Arms, House of Lords; and that all duties on behalf of the Sub-Committee be carried out by him as Serjeant-at-Arms.

6. That, subject to the foregoing recommendations, all existing rules and regulations governing the administration, control and custody of the House of Lords area continue in force for the time being, unless and until altered by order of the Sub-Committee.

The Committee has considered the special position of the Custodians who in future are to be provided by the Minister of Public Building and Works. Since it is clearly essential that the House should retain in its own hands the control of access, both within and into the House of Lords area, the Committee recommend that the Custodians, like the Police, should receive their operational orders direct from the Sub-Committee through Captain Mackintosh.

THE CHAIRMAN OF COMMITTEES (LORD MERTHYR)

My Lords, I beg to move that this Report be now considered.

Moved, That the Report be now considered.—(Lord Merthyr.)

On Question, Motion agreed to.

LORD MERTHYR

My Lords, I beg to move that this Report be now agreed to. In so doing, I should like to say that the effect of the House's agreeing to it would be to bring into existence the proposed Administration Committee, and I think it might be for the convenience of your Lordships if I were to name the members of the Committee, in addition to referring to them, as the Report does, by the positions they hold. The Administration Committee will consist of myself, as Chairman; the three Chief Whips, Lord Shepherd, the Earl St. Aldwyn and Lord Amulree; the Chairmen of the Refreshment Department and of the Library Sub-Committees, Lord Strang and Viscount Simonds; and, in addition, the Marquess of Salisbury, the Earl of Listowel and the Baroness Swanborough, they being appointed by the Offices Committee from among its own members. There remains one vacancy, and the Sub-Committee have power to co-opt any other Peer, whether a member of the Offices Committee or not. The Committee will be attended by the Clerk of the Parliaments.

My Lords, if, in the future, any Member of the House has any question to ask, or any matter to which he would like to draw the Committee's attention, he may write to or approach personally myself or any member of the Committee, and we will do our best to deal with the matter appropriately. Perhaps I should add that the actual machinery for the organisation of the custodians is still subject to consideration.

Finally, I know that I speak on the Committee's behalf when I say that their hope is that the administrative functions referred to in the Report will be carried out in the future with the same smoothness and efficiency as they have been in the past. The Committee, I need hardly say, owe a very great debt of gratitude to the noble Marquess, Lord Cholmondeley, for the friendly co-operation which he has always shown to them. I beg to move.

Moved, That the Report be agreed to.—(Lord Merthyr.)

On Question, Motion agreed to.