COMMONS AMENDMENTS (Hansard, 27 October 1981)

§ Lord Lyell

My Lords, I beg to move that this House doth agree with the Commons in their Amendments Nos. 174 and 175. Amendment No. 174 provides that the new clauses introduced by Amendments Nos. 30 and 68, which we discussed earlier, shall come into effect on the date of Royal Assent. It is essential that the clauses which make special provision for the extension of time within which certain companies' names may be changed—that was Amendment No. 30—and for the conversion of creditors' voluntary liquidations into members' voluntary liquidations, which was explained lucidly by my noble and learned friend Lord Mackay, to mitigate certain effects of the industrial action of the Companies Registration Office, should come into operation without delay. These provide that they shall come into force on the day of Royal Assent rather than on a day to be appinted. Amendment No. 175 provides in Clause 106(3) for the commencement of the provisions of the Bill on days to be appointed by statutory instrument, except in the case of those provisions which come into force on Royal Assent. These were the two earlier amendments that I mentioned.

Amendment No. 175 allows different days to be appointed for different purposes in respect of any particular provision contained in the Bill. That appears to provide licence, but in fact it will be carefully regulated and it will provide flexibility to permit, for example, the provisions of Part I to be commenced for overseas companies at a time different from their commencement for British companies. Amendment No. 175 will facilitate the process of commencement. I beg to move.