§ 2.43 p.m.
§ LORD BALFOUR OF INCHR YEMy Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.
[The Question was as follows:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether it is their intention to introduce legislation based on the Report of the Bledisloe Committee issued in 1961, and which has been repeatedly promised by successive Ministers of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.]
§ LORD DENHAMMy Lords, Her Majesty's Government hope that it will be possible for legislation on this subject to be introduced in the reasonably near future.
§ LORD BALFOUR OF INCHRYEMy Lords, arising out of that reply, may I
321 ask the Minister (while I am no advocate of "instant government", of which I think we have had a fairly good dose in the last few years), whether ten years is not rather a long time to go without a measure being brought forward? And might not the indefinite period now given mean a delay of another ten years?
§ LORD DENHAMMy Lords, I agree that it has taken ten years in the case of the majority of the recommendations. A certain number of the recommendations, of course, are already law. There were two short Acts passed in 1964 and 1965, and a number of recommendations were overtaken by the Rivers (Prevention of Pollution) Act 1961, and the Water Resources Act 1963.
§ LORD BALFOUR OF INCHRYEMy Lords, the Minister cannot really get away with that. The major part of the recommendations have not been introduced in the form of legislation, as was promised, and the Minister now says that this may come at some indefinite time, he hopes, in the future. Will he take the matter back and try to do a little better than that?
§ LORD DENHAMMy Lords, with respect, my noble friend knows very well that in each Session of Parliament one has to get the priorities right, and we are hoping that in the very near future the priorities will allow something to be done about this question.
§ LORD FRASER OF LONSDALEMy Lords, is my noble friend aware that this beautiful creature, the Atlantic salmon, is very rare? Is he also aware that it is a source of great wealth as well as pleasure, to Scotland and England, and will he seriously consider giving it priority?
§ LORD DENHAMMy Lords, of course what my noble friend has said will be considered by my right honourable friend.
§ VISCOUNT THURSOMy Lords, when Her Majesty's Government come to introduce legislation on the Bledisloe Report will they see that such legislation matches any legislation which is introduced in Scotland in consequence of the Hunter Report, because I doubt very 322 much whether the Atlantic salmon knows whether it is Scottish or English?
§ LORD DENHAMMy Lords, I cannot comment on the Hunter Report because it is a little wide of the original Question. As the noble Viscount will be aware, the existing laws on this subject are different as between Scotland and England, so that there must be some difference.
§ VISCOUNT THURSOMy Lords, if you are revising the laws, would you not think it wise to make the laws suitable for the species being dealt with, rather than defer to the different traditions in two countries within the United Kingdom?
§ LORD DENHAMYes, my Lords, this is very probably so. But, of course, we are discussing amending legislation, and since it will amend two different existing laws, the amendments must be different.