§ 3.35 p.m.
§ Report received (according to Order).
§ Clause 1:
§ Amendment of section 18(2) of the Police (Scotland) Act 1956
§ 1.—(1) For subsection (2) of section 18 of the Police (Scotland) Act 1956 (procedure regarding amalgamation schemes) there shall be substituted the following subsection—
§ (2)(a) Before making a scheme under this section the Secretary of State shall give to the police authorities concerned a notice describing the general nature of the proposed scheme and specifying the period within which objection may be made thereto.
§ LORD HUGHESMy Lords, with permission, I would speak on the first two Amendments together, as the second is consequential on the first. The first Amendment is similar in intention and wording to that moved by the noble Lord, Lord Drumablyn, in Committee on November 29. I then pointed out that the Government would have no difficulty in accepting the principle of the Amendment, but that I should like to look again at the wording, since consequential Amendments later in the Bill would also be required. The noble Lord agreed not to press his Amendment on that undertaking. The Amendment now before your Lordships has been cast in such a way that consequential Amendments elsewhere in the Bill will not be necessary. The exclusion of the words "in draft" which appeared 1569 in the noble Lord's Amendment and which I am advised are not necessary, is the only change that has been made. I trust that the Amendment in its present form will be found acceptable to your Lordships. The second Amendment is simply a matter of drafting, intended to make plain that objection may be made to any proposed scheme and not to the notice specifying the period within which objection may be made. I beg to move.
§
Amendment moved—
Page 1, line 9, leave out from ("shall") to ("the") in line 11, and insert ("send a copy of the proposed scheme to the police authorities concerned and shall specify in an accompanying notice").—(Lord Hughes.)
§ LORD DRUMALBYNI would thank the noble Lord for having met the point I made. I think our objectives are entirely at one in this regard and I hope that the change will achieve those objectives.
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ LORD HUGHESMy Lords, I beg to move this Amendment.
§
Amendment moved—
Page 1, line 12, leave out ("thereto") and insert ("to the proposed scheme").—(Lord Hughes.)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ LORD HUGHESMy Lords, this Amendment has the same intention as the second Amendment moved by the noble Lord, Lord Drumalbyn, in Committee, which was withdrawn by him on my undertaking to consider the matter. Its purpose is to make clear that the Secretary of State, in laying a draft Order before Parliament, is not bound to lay the identical proposed scheme which he sent to the police authorities and which was in the hands of the person holding the inquiry. As I said in Committee, my right honourable friend may modify a scheme in the light of the report of the inquiry, of representations of the police authorities concerned or in such other manner as he thinks fit.
It might be argued that the Amendment is superfluous in view of the fact that Section 18(1) of the Police (Scotland) Act 1965 appears to have this effect 1570 already. However, this is a point on which I feel—and I am sure the noble Lord will agree with me—that no harm can be done by making the point explicit, and this is what the Amendment does. I may add that the form of words which I have chosen is taken from Schedule 3 to the Police Act 1964, which implements a procedure in respect of amalgamation schemes that has been fully tested in England and Wales and has not been found wanting. I beg to move.
§ Amendment moved—
§
Page 1, line 20, at end insert—
("(c) Where such an inquiry has been held, the Secretary of State shall consider the report of the person holding that inquiry before determining whether the scheme should be made and if so subject to what modifications, if any.").—(Lord Hughes.)
§ LORD DRUMALBYNMy Lords, again I should like to thank the noble Lord. I am glad that he shares my view on the need to make it abundantly clear that it is possible for the Secretary of State to make modifications as he thinks fit.
THE EARL OF MANSFIELDMy Lords, as one who has been engaged in local administration for about a generation, I should like to thank the noble Lord, Lord Hughes, for the trouble he has taken to meet the points that have been put to him. Obviously, these amalgamations are bound to cause a considerable amount of ill-feeling, but that ill-feeling is equally bound to be diminished if the authorities concerned know that a proper inquiry has been held; that it is not just a question of the acceptance or rejection of a scheme, and that the Secretary of State has power to alter such a scheme as he thinks fit in view of circumstances which may be raised in the course of the inquiry. This ought to go a long way to do away with, or at least to diminish, the bitterness which many local authorities will undoubtedly feel at having their police forces amalgamated, although it must be accepted by all reasonable people that such amalgamations are definitely necessary.
§ LORD HUGHESMy Lords, I have much more cause to be grateful to the noble Earl for those words than my colleague had a few moments ago.
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.