Clause 98 - Temporary event notice
Licensing Bill [Lords]
4:45 pm
Mr Roger Gale (North Thanet, Conservative)
Before we proceed, I must tell the Committee that the clause that we have just considered was extremely complex and covered a wide range of issues. For that reason, I allowed a great deal of latitude in the discussion. We have a considerable amount of work to complete before the guillotine falls at 5 o'clock next Tuesday evening, so we have to make considerable progress. Clauses 99 to 101, although important, are relatively straightforward, and I hope that hon. Members will accept that I do not propose to allow the same latitude that I gave under clause 98 in debate on these clauses.
I should also point out to hon. Members that as Chairman, I have to take cognisance both of the welfare of the Officers of the House and of the fact that some Members need to sign and deliver post for collection prior to the new cut-off time of 6 o'clock. Therefore, I am prepared to allow the Committee to sit until 5.15 pm. It is entirely up to the members of the Committee whether they wish to sit later than that, but if they do, I shall suspend the Committee at 5.15 and reconvene it an hour later.