HL Deb 19 March 1984 vol 449 cc1036-9

7.11 p.m.

The Lord Chancellor (Lord Hailsham of Saint Marylebone)

My Lords, I beg to move that the House do now resolve itself into Committee (on recommitment) on this Bill.

Moved, That the House do now resolve itself into Committee (on recommitment)— (The Lord Chancellor.) On Question, motion agreed to.

House in Committee (on recommitment) accordingly.

[The LORD WELLS-PESTELL in the Chair.]

Clauses 1 to 19 agreed to.

Clause 20 [Rules for limitation of recoverable costs]:

The Lord Chancellor moved Amendment No. 1:

Page 9, leave out subsection (9) and insert— ("(9) In this section— the higher limit" means, subject to section 145, £3,000; the lower limit" means, subject to section 145, £600.").

The noble and learned Lord said: I should like, in this short intervention, to speak also to Amendment No. 5.

Amendment No. 5: Page, 70, line 31, leave out from ("Her Majesty in Council") to end of line 36 and insert—

  1. ("(a) that the county court limit for the purposes of any enactment referring to that limit, or
  2. (b) that the higher limit or the lower limit referred to in section 20 of this Act,
should be increased, Her Majesty may by Order in Council direct that the limit in question shall be such amount as may be specified in the Order.").

I think I can say that I am, in effect, speaking to all the amendments, but it may be more convenient if I explain them as I go along. The amendments arise from discussion in the Joint Committee on Consolidation Bills. The members of the committee, and in particular the noble and learned Lord, Lord Brightman, who is chairman of that committee, expressed some views about the form in which reference should be made in consolidation to the phrase "the county court limit" where it occurs in the Bill. The whole of these amendments are concerned with that matter. The amendments that I now propose reflect the view of the noble and learned Lord, Lord Brightman, and of the officials of my department, and I think also have the approval of parliamentary counsel.

These two particular amendments, Nos. 1 and 5, conform to that view. The amendments relate to the drafting device that is used in the County Courts Act 1959 and re-enacted in this Bill as a means of referring to the various monetary limits on the jurisdiction of the county courts. The amendments seek for the most part to clarify the meaning of the provisions in which this device, the expression "the county court limit", is used. The amendment to Clause 20 discards the reference to the county court limit as a means of defining the higher and lower limits that apply for the purposes of the clause. Instead, the figures of the present monetary limits are specifically mentioned so that there can be no confusion as to what the limits are. Since these limits can be increased by Order in Council under Clause 145, that clause is amended to refer specifically to them.

On Question, amendment agreed to.

Clause 20, as amended, agreed to.

Clauses 21 to 68 agreed to.

Clause 69 [Power to award interest on debts and damages]:

The Lord Chancellor moved Amendment No. 2: Page 38 line 7, after ("limit") insert ("for the purposes of any provision of this Act").

The noble and learned Lord said: This amendment is a small drafting amendment to clarify the meaning of the clause.

On Question, amendment agreed to.

Clause 69, as amended, agreed to.

Clauses 70 to 111 agreed to.

Clause 112 [Power to make administration order]:

The Lord Chancellor moved Amendment No. 3: Page 59, line 28, leave out ("the county court limit") and insert ("£400").

The noble and learned Lord said: In moving this amendment I should like also to speak to Amendments Nos. 4 and 19.

Amendment No. 4: Page 59, line 40, at end insert—

("(7) The Secretary of State may by regulations increase or reduce the sum for the time being specified in subsection (4)(b); but no such increase in the sum so specified shall affect any case in which the bankruptcy petition was presented before the coming into force of the increase.

(8) The power to make regulations under subsection (7) shall be exercisable by statutory instrument; and no such regulations shall be made unless a draft of them has been approved by resolution of each House of Parliament.").

Amendment No. 19: Schedule 4, Page 93, line 38, in the third column, at end insert—

("In Schedule 1, in Part I, the entry relating to the Administration of Justice Act 1965 and in Part II, paragraph 1 (d).").

The first amendment to Clause 112 corrects an error in the Bill. When the clause was being drafted a straightforward monetary reference in the provision that was being consolidated was, through an oversight, converted into the phrase "the county court limit". The amendment reinstates the correct reference. The second amendment to Clause 112 incorporates into the body of the clause a group of provisions that are at present contained in the Insolvency Act 1976 but confer powers in relation to the clause. These provisions should properly be contained in the clause to which they relate instead of being left in any outlying Act. The amendment so provides.

The amendment to Schedule 4 removes from the Insolvency Act the provisions that have been incorporated in the Bill by the amendments that I have just explained.

On Question, amendment agreed to.

The Lord Chancellor moved Amendment No. 4:

[Printed above.]

On Question, amendment agreed to.

Clause 112, as amended, agreed to.

Clauses 113 to 144 agreed to.

Clause 145 [Power to raise county court limit]:

The Lord Chancellor moved Amendment No. 5:

[Printed earlier.]

The noble and learned Lord said: I spoke to this with Amendment No. 1. I beg to move.

On Question, amendment agreed to.

Clause 145, as amended, agreed to.

Remaining clauses agreed to.

Schedule 1 agreed to.

Schedule 2 [Amendments of other enactments]:

The Lord Chancellor moved Amendment Nos. 6 to 18:

Page 76, line 24, leave out second ("county court limit") and insert ("amount")

Page 78, line 18, leave out ("county court limit") and insert ("amount")

Page 79, line 31, leave out ("county court limit") and insert ("amount")

Page 80, line 20, leave out ("county court limit") and insert ("amount")

Page 81, line 27, leave out ("county court limit") and insert ("amount")

Page 82, line 22, leave out ("county court limit") and insert ("amount")

Page 83, line 34, leave out from ("words") to ("which") in line 35 and insert ("amount")

Page 84, line 22, leave out ("county court limit") and insert ("amount")

Page 85, line 34, leave out ("county court limit") and insert ("amount")

Page 87, line 17, leave out ("county court limit") and insert ("amount")

Page 88, line 12, leave out ("county court limit") and insert ("amount")

Page 88, line 28, leave out ("county court limit") and insert ("amount")

Page 89, line 25, leave out ("county court limit") and insert ("amount").

The noble and learned Lord said: I think that, with the agreement of the Committee, we might take Amendments Nos. 6 to 18, inclusive, together. They are all amendments to Schedule 2. I believe that all of them have the effect that I am about to explain. Schedule 2 to the Bill provides for the amendment of a number of Acts. The purpose of these 13 amendments is to improve the drafting of several of the definitions of the county court limit. Some of the definitions provided for other statutes are rather circular in nature, and the amendments seek to make them less circular. I beg to move Amendments Nos. 6 to 18, inclusive.

On Question, amendments agreed to.

Schedule 2, as amended, agreed to.

Schedule 3 agreed to.

Schedule 4 [Repeals]:

The Lord Chancellor moved Amendment No. 19:

[Printed earlier.]

The noble and learned Lord said: I exhausted this amendment when I spoke earlier. I beg to move.

On Question, amendment agreed to.

Schedule 4, as amended, agreed to.

House resumed: Bill reported with the amendments.