BERMUDA PETITION (Hansard, 9 May 1968)

HL Deb 09 May 1968 vol 291 cc1663-82 1663

§ 7.30 p.m.

§ LORD BROCKWAY
My Lords. I beg leave to move that the Petition which I read earlier in the day, signed by the inhabitants of Bermuda, shall be printed in the Journals of this House. There is one incidental reason why this should be printed which I think will appeal to many Members of your Lordships' House. This is the first occasion in this century on which the presentation of a Petition has been followed by a debate of this kind; and let me say at once to the Leader of the House that I shall understand if he thinks it desirable that the Committee for Procedure should reconsider how these matters should be dealt with.
There was a rule in another place that when Petitions were presented there should be an immediate debate before any other business in the House. It was found that this happened so frequently and that the business of the House was so often held up that new Standing Orders were necessary. If I may say so to the Leader of the House, I hope that when this matter is reconsidered here it will not result in quite such a rigid basis as has been decided upon in another place. I have presented many Petitions there; they have been put in a green bag and nothing has ever been heard of them afterwards. For that reason, when this matter is reconsidered I hope that, with the liberality which is characteristic of this House, the procedure regarding Petitions will be a little more generous than that. This may easily prove a quite historic day in the records of this House. It is not only the first occasion in this century that we have had a debate fol 1664 lowing a Petition; it may be the last. In such circumstances I think that those who in the future may be doing research work on the history of this House may very well like to have a printed record of this Petition.
I accept at once that that is an incidental reason. I want to argue in favour of it on much more fundamental grounds. I am doing so primarily because I am concerned about what is, perhaps, the deepest issue of our times—that of race relations—as it is reflected in the island of Bermuda. In many ways the Caribbean islands, which were in the British sphere of influence, have given us an example in race relations. Quite extraordinarily, in Jamaica and in the other islands there has been an association of those of different races—descendants of African slaves, descendants of Indian indentured labourers, with the white population. That example has been of very great value to our own country and, I will say, to the world. Nevertheless, when I have visited the islands in the West Indies there has been this fear in my mind. I have found that in those territories, while relations between the white and non-white races have been good, there was the potentiality of conflict. The main impression left in my mind has been the extraordinary gulf between the standard of living of the white population—often a standard of luxury—and the struggle for existence of the mass of the non-white people there. Unless that problem in the West Indian islands is dealt with there may easily grow up racial conflict.
This is very relevant to the situation in Bermuda. Strangely enough, in Bermuda we have the oldest Legislature in the world outside the United Kingdom. I have been writing on this matter recently and I find that the only territory which used to be associated with this country which had an older Legislature was Virginia, which is now part of the United States of America. Until the recent Constitution, the Constitution in Bermuda was that of pre-American War of Independence times. Under that Constitution you had a white minority which was able to dominate the great majority of non-whites in that island.
In the coming election there will be for the first time universal suffrage in that island. All of us who know its 1665 past history and know that, despite the facts which I have given, there has not been violent racial conflict, will hope that the first election of a democratic character may be held in such circumstances as to be a precedent for the future and an example for the whole of the Caribbean area. I find it very significant indeed that the recent State of Emergency in Bermuda is the first that has ever been proclaimed in that island. It is an indication that if we are wise and careful in our procedure now, the danger of racial conflict will be averted.
My Lords, for all these reasons, it is very desirable that in this Chamber to-night we should seek, in a responsible way, to reach a solution of this problem between the white and the non-white races in Bermuda which will be acceptable to them all. Because I do not desire to intensify racial feelings there I do not propose to discuss the recent events. I want, in a constructive way, to look at the present situation and to look at the future.
It is the present intention that the General Election is to take place there on May 22. The decision on that date and the announcement of it was made during the State of Emergency. It was made in circumstances in Bermuda where public meetings of more than five were not to be allowed, when there was to be a curfew (I think at 8 o'clock) which would prevent the ordinary election activity of canvassing to take place; which would even prevent any live presentations on television—which, perhaps in Bermuda even more than here, is a method by which the electors can be influenced. In these circumstances television acted unfairly. Because the Governmental party, the white party, in Bermuda has greater resources, it had been able to get canned production of television propaganda; and because the curfew confined people to their homes television propaganda from the richer Party reached them to a greater extent than would otherwise have been the case. They could not enjoy television propaganda from the Progressive Labour Party, because it had less resources.
I want to acknowledge this at once. I have been engaged in discussions with the Commonwealth Ministry and with others during the last few days and I recognise that the Commonwealth Min 1666 istry has gone a considerable way to meet us. First, it reduced the curfew; and, secondly, yesterday it decided to lift the State of Emergency—or at least the Governor did on their behalf. That I welcome and recognise. However, my Lords, I wish to put it to you that that has been clone too late to enable the election to take place on May 22 under fair conditions. It is not only that there has already been an advantage on television to the United Bermuda Parly, the Party of the white minority, in the way I have described, but much more serious (I want to put this with all the influence I can exert to your Lordships) these questions of race relations in 11, last resort are nearly always issues of psychology. The recent riots in Bermuda, and more particularly the interpretation given to them, has created a climate that island which in my view would be disastrous for the commencement of an election campaign.
There is bitterness there; there is ill-will; there is suspicion; there is doubt about the role of those in authority, justified or not. That is the psychology in that island, and it is an impossible psychology in which to begin an election where you are likely to have a fair expression of the feelings of the community. This may not seem to be concrete, but the feeling in the community is the most important factor if you are to proceed into an election which is to reflect the democratic view.
My Lords, under the present Constitution the election need not take place before the end of June. There is noshing sacrosanct about the date of May 22, which has now been decreed. When—how shall I put it?: I do not want to reveal confidential discussions—I have argued this, the reply has been that it is impossible for the Government and Her Majesty and the Privy Council to cancel the Order in Council which has put the date at May 22. I find this a little extraordinary—one of those curious coincidences which occur in political life—that the precedent of an Order in Council being withdrawn and of a second Order in Council being issued, also relate; to Bermuda. I have in my hand the Statutory Instrument 1968 No. 463 Caribbean and North Atlantic Territories, the Burmuda Constitution Amendment 01-der which records that Her Majesty the 1667 Queen in Privy Council amended the Order in Council which had previously been introduced; and there is nothing in constitutional practice which would prevent that from being done to-day. It is a comparatively small thing.
Even if I have not convinced my noble friend of the desirability of postponing this election, perhaps he would do me the justice of agreeing that over the years I have given my mind to these questions. Over the years I have tried to understand what is happening in Colonial Territories. Particularly I have tried to understand the psychological position in territories where there was a danger of a racial explosion, where there was a white minority and a non-white majority. I do not put it any higher than this: that the change of date from May 22 to the end of June is a comparatively small constitutional matter, and if what I am urging is true—that it would be less likely to lead to racial conflict—Her Majesty's Government ought to accept this proposal.
My Lords, I have been authorised to say this. If the election were postponed, even for a month, which may not seem long, it would give an opportunity for a pause, for a new atmosphere to be created. I am authorised to say that the leaders of the Progressive Labour Party who are now in this country, the leader of the Opposition in the Legislature, the Chairman of the Party, and the Third Representative in the Legislature, are prepared to return to Bermuda and seek to create there the atmosphere of calm and reason in which it would be possible to have a postponed election without the dangerous climate which now exists and will exist if there is an immediate election. Inevitably they will raise controversial issues. They are dissatisfied with the present Constitution, and they will want to move forward towards independence. They would want to do that in a reasoned way. The danger is that if constitutional issues are raised in the present climate of psychology in Bermuda, instead of having an election which could be carried out in that kind of atmosphere, the racial intensities may be extended.
My Lords, I urge that this is worth doing, and I very much hope that Her 1668 Majesty's Government will at least agree that the Petition that I have presented to-day may be printed in the Journals of the House so that not merely your Lordships' House but the public generally may be aware of the fact that in this situation an attempt has been made to resolve these problems in a way which will make racial tension less likely. My Lords, I beg to move.

§ LORD BEAUMONT OF WHITLEY
My Lords, I, too, do not wish to concentrate on the details of what has happened—

§ LORD SHACKLETON
My Lords, I wonder whether I may interrupt the noble Lord. We are having a debate, but we have not had the Question put to the House.

THE LORD CHANCELLOR
My Lords, I did not know that there would be any Motion, unless it be that the Petition be printed. The Question is, That the Petition be printed in the Journals of the House.

§ Moved, That the Petition be printed in the Journals of the House.—(Lord Brockway.)

§ 8.0 p.m.

§ LORD BEAUMONT OF WHITLEY
My Lords, I apologise to your Lordships for "beating the gun". I, too, do not want to dwell on the details of what has happened in Bermuda in the immediate past because, with the noble Lord opposite, I agree that in elections, even more than at other times, what people believe and feel are even more potent factors than what has actually occurred. But there are half-a-dozen facts which I should like to put before your Lordships.
First, Bermuda has a history not so much of racial dispute as of distance between the races, of bad relationship, even though it has never come to the top, something which I think, having seen a lot of the West Indies, is worse than anywhere else in the islands. I have been shocked, in a way I have not been anywhere else in the West Indies, by some of the attitudes I have come across in Bermuda. Secondly, there is a situation now which undoubtedly has had a worse effect on two of the Parties in this election than on the third. I accept that this was almost certainly not intended by anyone, but it is undoubtedly true.
1669 Thirdly, allegations have been thrown about as to the cause of the riots, which undoubtedly led many people in Bermuda, again possibly without justification, to believe that the authorities there have taken certain views about the position and actions of the Progressive Labour Party. Fourthly, considerable disquiet has been caused because the new Constitution, which has not in these respects come into force, and which lays down specific provisions as to what should happen in a case like this, has been disregarded. There is no legal reason why it should have been regarded but, these parts of the Constitution having been agreed on, it seems to me extremely odd, and I do not wonder that it seems odd to Bermudans, that these provisions were not followed.
Then I think we are all agreed that this is a key election. It is the first time Bermuda has had adult suffrage, and this election will have an effect on the final form of the new Constitution adopted. I can see that in the circumstances the authorities and the Governor may have thought the best thing to do was to get an election over. They may have thought: "Let us have an election, and a Government which has a popular mandate; then we can deal with these matters, have a committee of investigation and settle down to sorting out the problems".
I see the strength of this argument. I cannot believe that it is right. I cannot believe that it is right that this election should take place in an atmosphere in which, if the result goes one way, there will be tremendous suspicion on the part of something like half of the island that the election was not honest and was all part of some kind of conspiracy. However misguided this is, I am certain that everything that can be done should be done to obviate this and lull suspicion. It seems to me that by putting off this election to the end of June a very considerable step could be taken towards doing this. It is for this reason that I support the Motion of the noble Lord, Lord Brockway, that this Petition should be printed, and I go on to urge that Her Majesty's Government should agree to it.

§ 8.4 p.m.

§ LORD MANCROFT
My Lords, clearly this is an important matter, but I am not certain that this is the right 1670 way of dealing with it. Here we are, with barely a dozen Members present in the House, discussing a matter that affects very considerably the future of our fellow citizens in Bermuda. Therefore I would address only one minute's worth of remarks to your Lordships' House and declare an interest immediately. I got back only yesterday from Bermuda, where I have a financial interest in that I am director of the Cunard Line which runs a regular weekly cruise down to Bermuda. The whole of the tourist industry ha; been greatly affected by the unrest in the island. Hotel reservations are being cancelled, and doubts are thrown into everybody's mind about the stability of an island which has hitherto been regarded us on2 of the happiest and most stable places in the world. I say this only to let the noble Lord, Lord Brockway, know that I am not for a moment underestimating the importance of this matter.
I came into the House quite casually. I confess, this afternoon and heard that this matter was to be raised. I had done my best in the last two or three days in Bermuda to acquaint myself wit i the facts. Incidentally, they do not correspond very largely with those put before the House by the noble Lord, Lord Brockway, and by the noble Lord, Lord Beaumont of Whitley—but that is a matter which can surely be discussed on another occasion, after more careful thought and in a fuller assembly of your Lordships' House. I have only just had time to read the noble Lord's Petition and the brief which accompanied it.

§ LORD SHACKLETON
May I interrupt the noble Lord? If he had been in the House immediately after Questions he would have heard the procedure outlined. The Petition has been available. This is not the occasion on which to settle the issues that have been raised; we have merely to decide whether the Petition should be presented and printed. It is open to the noble Lord, Lord Brockway, to raise certain comments, and for the convenience of the House it was decided to take the matter now. There may be faults in the procedure of the House—indeed, I think there probably are—but we have done the best we can in the circumstances, and therefore I think that the noble Lord ought not to blame either the noble Lord, Lord Brockway, or any of the rest of us, for coping with this situation in this way.

1671

§ LORD MANCROFT
My Lords, I am blaming nobody. All I am saying is that I have not had time to read the Petition, to understand it, to get myself briefed and produce any cogent arguments one way or the other. Nor, I suspect, looking at the empty Benches round about me, have many other noble Lords. I am not criticising the noble Lord at all. He is angry with me; I am sorry about that, but this is not the proper way of dealing with a matter of this importance.

§ LORD SHACKLETON
My Lords, the noble Lord is raising a question of fundamental procedure, which is not the subject under debate at the moment. It has already been suggested that this matter should go before the Procedure Committee. It is not my fault that this Petition has been available only for a few hours. I am not in the least angry, but the noble Lord has come rather late on the scene.

§ LORD MANCROFT
I am not late on the scene. I was here when this matter arose in the first place. We are not only discussing procedure. The noble Lord in front of me raised several powerful points about the whole fundamental issue at stake, as he was perfectly entitled to do. What I am trying to put to the noble Lord, Lord Shackleton, if he would kindly allow me, for a change, to finish one or two sentences, is that there are better ways of dealing with this matter than debating it at this time of night.
Other Members of your Lordships' House will no doubt wish to give an opinion upon it. I agree that it is urgent. I merely raise the point that another way should be found, and I ask the noble Lord whether he can find a more satisfactory way of dealing with a matter of this importance without its being sprung on noble Lords like myself; and, contrary to the noble Lord's expectation, I did present myself at the opening of proceedings this afternoon but still did not have time to brief myself adequately upon it. This is my fault, I agree. But I was in Bermuda only yesterday, and therefore I have not had time to get myself fully informed on this matter. This is a matter on which we should all like to be fully informed. It is an urgent matter upon which a decision should be taken fairly rapidly, and it is one on which we should like to check some of the—"allegations" is an unkind word, 1672 but some of the views put forward in the noble Lord's Petition.
There are other points of view on this. There are those who think that the Governor has behaved with sagacity and promptness in dealing with a difficult and embarrassing situation. What I am arguing with the noble Lord is that this is a matter on which he should be able to give us his opinion now as to how a more satisfactory method could be arrived at for debating such an important matter as this, without only a few hours passing between the matter being raised and its being debated. I consider it very lucky that I happened to be in the House at an early stage, and that I was able to cancel all my affairs and come back and do what I hope is my duty and raise this matter. As I have said, I am not in any way discussing the pros and cons of the noble Lord's Petition, but am merely suggesting that there are other and better ways than this rather haphazard manner of debating a very important matter, which may have, as the noble Lord on the Liberal Benches said, far-reaching consequences. With this I agree; but they should not be debated at this time of night in such a small House as this.

§ 8.12 p.m.

§ LORD SHEPHERD
My Lords, perhaps I can say to the noble Lord, Lord Mancroft, that according to Erskine May my noble friend Lord Brockway is within his rights to present a Petition, and clearly to make comments. As I understand it, my noble friend is not asking for the approval of the House of the contents of the Petition, but is seeking for it to be printed in the Journals and to be available to all Members of the House. I will have one or two words to say about that at the end.
I propose to deal briefly with the major points that the noble Lord and his noble friend who sits on the Liberal Benches have raised. I am sure the House will understand that I cannot, and will not, go as far as either of the noble Lords, because I think it would be utterly wrong for a Minister of the Crown in the British Parliament to say anything or do anything which would in any way influence those who are in Bermuda and who will for the first time be exercising a vote under universal suffrage. However, I must say this. I deeply deplore the 1673 reference to racial strife in terms of Party politics in Bermuda. I do not know whether there are white men in the P.L.P.; I do not know whether there are coloured men in the U.B.P. My guess is that there are. I think, therefore, that it is utterly wrong, particularly when the noble Lord, Lord Brockway, and others seek for racial harmony, to talk in terms of racial strife as between political Parties in Bermuda.
I think I should say to the noble Lord, Lord Beaumont, on an aside he made about the allegations, and alleged references as to who was responsible for the riots, that clearly I do not know who was responsible for the riots. A Commission is being set up. The noble Lord may have in mind the reports that were printed in The Times and were later corrected. As I know, and perhaps the noble Lord, Lord Beaumont, knows, unfortunately The Times report, stemming from Reuter, omitted certain facts which were available to the reporter for Reuter's in Bermuda and which were transmitted but were unfortunately left out of the report. But it was corrected.
I should like to say this to the House. Many of us know the noble Lord, Lord Martonmere, the Governor of Bermuda, from another place, and some of us may know him as the Governor of Bermuda. In all my experience I do not believe there has been a Governor who has more conscientiously sought to reconcile the different peoples in a Colony. I wish that we had more Lord Martonmeres for the problems that beset us, not only within the colonial territories but also within our Commonwealth. Therefore, I would say this: that I, as the responsible Minister for dependent territories, have the utmost confidence in the noble Lord, Lord Martonmere, as Governor, and those officials who serve under him.

§ LORD BEAUMONT OF WHITLEY
My Lords, I hope the noble Lord will accept that I did not say, or even imply, any reflection on the Governor, with the exception of just questioning his judgment on one important and very difficult decision. I was merely talking about what people unfortunately believe, and I would not have cast any aspersion at all.

§ LORD SHEPHERD
The noble Lord will understand why I reacted to him, 1674 because that was the impression: that an aspersion was being conveyed on the official. Let us be under no illusion that what we now say in this House could well be printed in Bermuda; and in the circumstances if there was doubt in my mind I think it would be wrong that I should not at least have it put right.
My noble friend Lord Brockway said that the election in Bermuda could have been postponed until later in June and that one of the political Parties (I prefer to use the phrase "the political Farties" as opposed to "one of the political Parties") was unaware of the date in order to commence its campaign. I think we should get this clear in our minds: that under the present Statute the Assembly in Bermuda would lawfully have completed its full statutory period by the end of May of this year. Therefore, it was known to all the political Parties and their leaders that there would be a General Election in May, or perhaps earlier.

§ LORD BROCKWAY
My Lords, I am sorry to interrupt, but I am surprised at my noble friend's statement. I did not make any reference at all to E. Party being unaware of the election.

§ LORD SHEPHERD
We must rut this down to the lateness of the evening: that was certainly my impression. The: point is that the political Parties were aware that there was to be an election by May of this year. The sequence of events is that on April 9 the Executive Council decided that a General Election should be called, that the Assembly should be prorogued, and that the election date should be on May 22. That was approved by the Executive Council on April 9, well before the disturbances that took place at the end of the month. It is perfectly true that the date was not announced until Prorogation on April 29, but there is no doubt that the date was known. In fact, the date of the election was discussed in the House of Assembly in Bermuda. So there is no question of an election being sprung or that the Parties were not aware of it.
The disturbances took place on the 25th, 26th and 27th, and a State of Emergency was declared on the 27th. I will say this to the noble Lord, Lord Brockway. The Secretary of State, myself 1675 (and I am directly responsible for dependent territories) and the Government were seized of the fact immediately that in view of the disturbances, in view of the Prorogation and the election, all possible steps should be taken to see that a campaign for both Parties or all Parties could be undertaken.
On May 1 the political Parties were permitted to hold meetings, and then it was subject to the permission of the Commissioner of Police. On May 6 these meetings could now be held, but no permission was needed by any of the authorities, nor were police to be present. I think I should also say that during this whole period television and radio broadcasting was permitted andI will come back to this matter in a moment. But on May 8 the Governor and it was the Governor, not Her Majesty's Government in this country—exercising his full authority, decided that a situation had arisen so that the State of Emergency could be raised.
We have therefore considered all this with the greatest of care. We have, like the noble Lord, Lord Brockway, seen the representatives of the P.L.P. I saw them on Monday and, with the Secretary of State, I again saw them on Wednesday; and in the light of all the circumstances I do not believe that there is anything in any way that inhibits a genuine Party political campaign for an election, for a polling day on May 22, I would question very much whether a postponement would achieve what the noble Lord, Lord Brockway, has in mind. I believe that a change to-day would create even greater uncertainty in the minds of the people of Bermuda. But all the information that is available to me—and I think it was confirmed by the noble Lord, Lord Mancroft—is that there is calm and security to-day in Bermuda. I have not the slightest shadow of doubt—and in fact I have had this assurance from the Governor—that there will be nothing done in any shape or form to prevent a free political campaign.
I will say this to my noble friend, Lord Brockway. I understand that the Government of Bermuda—that is, the official Government—will be using the television and the radio in order to explain to the new voters of Bermuda the manner in which they can vote, the 1676 secrecy and security of their vote, and will do all possible to see that this first vote under a universal suffrage will be effective, will be fair and will be secret to all. I will also say to my noble friend that I recognise that for perhaps a few days, perhaps a week, the momentum of a political campaign was affected; that meetings were difficult, canvassing was difficult. But I have spoken to the Governor, and he has given me an assurance that if he is approached by either of the political Parties, either singly or jointly, for extra time on television and radio, in order that the views of either of the political Parties can be put to the people of Bermuda, he will consider such an approach with the utmost sympathy.
Perhaps I may conclude by saying this. I believe, having visited Bermuda on a number of occasions, not only as a Minister of State in the Commonwealth Office, that the Governor, who is a great Parliamentarian himself, is determined to see that there is a basis for free and genuine elections in Bermuda. I would only say this to my noble friend Lord Brockway, since he said he had an assurance from the leaders of the P.L.P. that if only we would concede a delay they would go back and speak for calm and sense in elections: that I hope he will convey to them that, as responsible political leaders, irrespective of the date of the election they have an equal responsibility—not only themselves but those in the other political Parties—to see that those elections are carried out in calm and in sense on polling day. Any assurance given should not be restricted to whether a concession can be made now.
In ending, I say this to my noble friend. We have given this matter the most anxious thought from the beginning of the emergency; we have sought to find ways in which the emergency could be lifted progressively, although the final responsibility must be with the Governor. We have always had at the back of our minds that there should be this free opportunity for a genuine election. Having done that, having seen the restrictions progressively removed, we have come to the conclusion, after very anxious thought, that conditions for a free election exist and that in the end to postpone an election would only be to the disadvantage of the people of Bermuda.
1677 I turn now to the procedural point of the noble Lord, Lord Brockway. He has asked for this document to be printed. I would accept that this is a document that should be read. I would not raise just the matter of expense in terms of printing, but it is considerable. I would hope that the noble Lord would feel that this has been a vehicle—as he has said, it is the first time in a century that this procedure has been used; and, perhaps, who better and who more likely to have found a way of using it than Lord Brockway?—and that he has served his purpose and that of his friends in raising this matter, and that he will be content now to take what I hope would be the advice of the House to withdraw the Motion, so that the House may then adjourn.

§ 8.27 p.m.

§ LORD BROCKWAY
My Lords, I wish to exercise the right of reply to say two things to my noble friend and one thing to the noble Lord opposite. First, I want to say to my noble friend that I think he knows that I would not be urging things which would intensify racial feeling. When I described one Party in Bermuda as largely the voice of the white minority, and another Party as largely the voice of the non-white majority, I was not rejoicing in that fact and I certainly was not seeking to intensify antagonism between them; I was seeking to state a fact. There are, of course, some non-white members of the U.B.P. There are some white members of the P.L.P. But thinking in terms of any analysis of the population of Bermuda, one is a Party which is dominated by the white minority and its interests, and the other is the Party of the non-white majority and their hopes. I did not mean more than that, and I certainly did not want to intensify feeling.
The other thing I want to say to my noble friend I will join with what I want to say to the noble Lord opposite. I deplore the fact that we are discussing this important matter in this small House and at this time. I do not know whether he would have supported me if I had insisted on the right, which under Erskine May I had, of an immediate debate after I had read the Petition. I tried to contribute to the convenience of the House, and in the spirit of tolerance which one finds here. It was in that 1678 attitude that I agreed that the debate should be held later this evening.
The noble Lord has returned from Bermuda to-day, and therefore perhaps he does not know the whole history of this matter. I put the Motion for the presentation of the Petition on the Order Paper last week, and therefore the Members of the House knew about it. I did not press it then only because I knew that the Commonwealth Relations Office was in discussion with the Governor in Bermuda about this; and I replaced it on the Order Paper for today only when I had heard about the conclusions of those discussions, because I did not want to embarrass them. So I think I may say to the noble Lord that I have acted fairly and reasonably in this matter.

§ LORD MANCROFT
My Lords, if the noble Lord will allow me to interrupt him, I am not for one moment criticising his political skill, his fairness or his propriety. I was merely expressing regret that this important matter has so arrived that it has been discussed in the presence of so few Members of your Lordships' House.

§ LORD BROCKWAY
My Lords, that I accept at once, and I regret it, but I was trying to explain how it came about that the discussion was taking place at the end of this day. However, the noble Lord and my noble friend will be pleased to know that I believe I have found a method by which I can meet their desires that the Members of this House may become aware of these issues, without insisting on the printing in the Journals. Quite obviously the way to meet this is to read to the House to-night the Petition which has been presented to-day.

§ LORD SHACKLETON
My Lords, if I may interrupt the noble Lord, I should like first to say that I sympathise with him—and of course we are all feeling our way in this matter—but I should have thought that the case had been so well made as to make it unnecessary for the Petition to be read. Of course, unless the House decides that they will not hear him any more, the noble Lord can read the Petition. Perhaps it will not take very long.

§ LORD BROCKWAY
My Lords, I thank the noble Lord the Leader of the House for that intervention, and also for 1679 the fact that the Petition has been duplicated. But every one of us who is a Member of this House knows quite well that only an insignificant number of Members will have read this duplicated appeal. If I read the Petition now and it appears in the columns of Hansard, it will then be open to all Members of the House to read it, and they will have the oportunity to do so. I therefore propose to read it, which is absolutely within my rights. The Petition reads as follows: To The Right Honourable the Lords Spiritual and Temporal in Parliament assembled: The humble Petition of Hugh Edward Richardson, Walter Cuthbert Roberts and Walter Nathaniel Harvey Robinson, inhabitants of the Colony of Bermuda: Showeth:—

(1) that your Petitioners are all members of the Progressive Labour Party of Bermuda and are authorised by that party to petition Your Right Honourable House on its behalf as well as on their own behalf:

(2) that Your Petitioners are all candidates in the coming General Election in Bermuda and that Your first Petitioner is Chairman of the Progressive Labour Party, that your second petitioner was a Member of the dissolved House of Assembly and that Your third Petitioner was the Leader of the Opposition in the said Assembly:

(3) that Your Petitioners and their party desire that the said General Election shall be conducted under circumstances which are fair to all those contesting therein but Your Petitioners humbly submit that in the present circumstances this is impossible:

(4) that on the 25th, 26th and 27th April last riots occurred in Hamilton the capital of Bermuda and that on the said 27th April the Governor of Bermuda proclaimed a State of Emergency, this being the first time that any such Proclamation has been made in Bermuda:

(5) that despite the fact that the Bermuda Constitution Order 1968 provides in Section 14 that (after the said Order is brought into effect) the Governor must summon the Assembly whether dissolved or no to discuss any such Proclamation of Emergency within five days the Governor failed to act in the spirit of the said provision but prorogued the Assembly on the 29th April and thereafter immediately dissolved it:

(6) that despite the fact that a State of Emergency existed the Governor issued writs for a new Election to take place on the 22nd of this month though he was under no legal obligation so to do in that Section 7 of Her Majesty's Order in Council made under the Bermuda Constitution Act 1967 enabled the 1680 Election to be deferred, if necessary, for up to two months after the dissolution of the House of Assembly:

(7) that by reason of the said State of Emergency Your Petitioners and all other candidates in the said Election have been prevented until Wednesday 8th May instant from campaigning for their return to the House of Assembly when the said Proclamation of Emergency was revoked, that Your Petitioners and members of their party in particular have been prevented from appearing on television or holding public meetings or canvassing the electors and that Your Petitioners and their party have otherwise been harassed and hindered in their campaign:

(8) that polling day in the said Election having been fixed for the 22nd May instant there does not now remain sufficient time for Your Petitioners and their party to put their case before the electorate:

(9) that Your Petitioners and other candidates of their party are already prejudiced in that the constituencies containing their supporters are much larger in numbers than those where the supporters of their opponents predominate, that the arrangements for the registration of electors has been unfair and discriminatory and that, in particular, persons who have recently arrived in the Island may have been registered as electors without any proper check to see if they were qualified so to be entered on the electoral register, and that by reason of the tensions created through the said Proclamation of a State of Emergency and the failure so far to appoint a Commission of Enquiry to investigate as promised by the Government of the Island the cause of the said riots and the responsibility therefore it would be unfair and prejudicial to Your Petitioners and to other candidates of whatever party belonging if the Election were to take place upon the date presently fixed.
Wherefore Your Petitioners pray that Your Right Honourable House will take into deliberation the conditions under which it is proposed to hold elections in Bermuda and in particular, that Your Right Honourable House will submit an Humble Address to Her Majesty praying that an Order in Council be made under the Bermuda Constitution Act 1967 cancelling writs already issued for the Election and ordering that new writs be issued therefor on any convenient date immediately following the 8th day of May instant when the said State of Emergency was ended and Your Petitioners further pray that Your Right Honourable House will take any further or other steps as to Them seem appropriate in this regard: And Your Petitioners as in duty bound, will ever pray, etc. That is signed: "Hugh E. Richardson", and the address; "Walter C. Roberts", and the address; "Walter N. H. Robinson", and the address. My Lords, I beg leave to withdraw the Motion.

1681

§ LORD SHACKLETON
My Lords, before the noble Lord withdraws his Motion, if I may by leave of the House speak again, since I spoke earlier before the noble Lord, Lord Brockway moved that the Petition be printed, I should like to say that when I interrupted the noble Lord, Lord Mancroft, I was unaware that he was present when the matter was first discussed, and I thought he was probably unaware that the matter had been before the House—or at least that the Petition had been referred to on the Order Paper on Tuesday, and indeed on Thursday last.
Since my noble friend was concerned with making history, perhaps I ought to point out that he is also in process of changing history, because I think it is unlikely that your Lordships, after you have considered this matter, will regard this as a satisfactory procedure. I feel that it is my duty, as Leader of the House, at all times to seek to protect the House in accordance with its traditions and past practice and there is no doubt that my noble friend Lord Brockway was, on such information as is available, either in the Companion or in Erskine May, entitled to the procedure which he followed. However, I must say that having agreed, on the initiative of the House, to reproduce these copies of his Petition and to make them freely available in the Printed Paper Office, it would seem quite inappropriate for my noble friend actually to have gone on to read the Petition. No special circumstances have been advanced as to why this Petition should have been printed at all. This is not in regard to the merits 1682 or demerits of the case he put and which he fully deployed, but special circumstances are necessary in order to justify the printing of the Petition, and I think this is a matter to which the Procedure Committee will have to give careful consideration. Many years ago in mother place, because of actions which had been taken by Members of another place, they found a satisfactory way of disposing of Petitions From the standpoint of the House, but the value of those Petitions may to a considerable extent have been lost. No doubt the Procedure Committee will consider this matter. There are, of course, many ways in which matters can be brought before this House, but the more we take undue advantage of our own liberality the more we shah bind chains on our own procedures.

§ Motion, by leave, withdrawn.