§ Lord SOAMESMy Lords, I beg to move the Motion standing in my name on the Order Paper. In June 1977, both Houses agreed to a proposal of the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments that Orders in Council made under the Northern Ireland Act 1974 should be excluded from their consideration. At the same time, a consequential amendment was made to the Public Business Standing Orders of the House of Lords to exclude Northern Ireland orders from the scope of Standing Order No. 68, which requires that no Motion to approve an Affirmative Instrument shall be moved until the report of the Joint Committee thereon has been laid before the House.
It has now become apparent that the amendment, in the form in which it was made, had the effect of removing Northern Ireland orders from the ambit of Private 1613 Business Standing order No. 216, which lays down the procedure to be observed in the case of Affirmative Instruments which are hybrid. This effect was unintended and the object of the present amendments is to restore the position to what it was in relation to hybrid Instruments before the original amendment was made. My Lords, I beg to move.
Moved, That Standing Order 68 relating to Public Business be amended as follows:
Paragraph (1)(a): At the beginning insert "except in the case of any Order in Council or Draft Order in Council made or proposed to be made under paragraph 1 of Schedule 1 to the Northern Ireland Act 1974",
Paragraph (2): At the end leave out "nor any Order in Council or draft Order in Council made or proposed to be made under paragraph 1 of Schedule 1 to the Northern Ireland Act 1974",—(Lord Soames.)
§ On Question, Motion agreed to.