– in the House of Commons at on 4 March 1929.
Sir Harry Brittain
, Acton
asked the Home Secretary whether in view of the difficulties arising out of the application of provisions of the Shop Hours Act, he will consider the appointment of a Committee to inquire into the question?
Mr William Joynson-Hicks
, Twickenham
My hon. Friend appears to overlook the circumstances in which this Act was passed. I would remind him that it was preceded by a prolonged and detailed inquiry by an exceptionally strong Committee, which included nine Members of this House and represented every section of opinion, and that, with some slight modifications, the Act of 1928 gives effect to the recommendations of this Committee, which were practically unanimous. Moreover, the provisions of the Bill were fully discussed in this House, both on the Second Reading and on the Report stage, and exhaustively examined in Standing Committee, and both in this and the other House the Bill passed its Second and Third Readings without a Division. These facts show that the Act of last Session represented the clear and considered judgment of Parliament, and it would, in my opinion, be too early, when the Act has been only a few months in operation, to reopen the whole question by a further inquiry.
Sir Harry Brittain
, Acton
Will my right hon. Friend believe that he has given me just the answer I wanted, as there is considerable misunderstanding throughout the country as to whether D.O.R.A. is dead or not?
Mr William Joynson-Hicks
, Twickenham
I am more than delighted that I have been able to please my hon. Friend.
Sir Frank Meyer
, Great Yarmouth
Is it not a fact that these alleged difficulties only arise out of the fertile imagination of hysterical journalists?
Mr William Joynson-Hicks
, Twickenham
I am very glad, indeed, personally, to have been able to give this answer, because, as my hon. Friend knows, the journalistic attacks on me have been rather heavy lately, but I think when you travel about the country you find that there is very little Opposition to the Act.
Sir Harry Brittain
, Acton
Does my right hon. Friend not agree that it has been a Godsend to the cartoonists?
Mr Frederick Macquisten
, Argyll
Does my right hon. Friend not think it is as wrong for this House to interfere with the right of an individual to work as long as he likes as to compel him to use the new Prayer Book?
Mr William Joynson-Hicks
, Twickenham
If my hon. and learned Friend had taken that objection and carried the House with him, the Act would not have been passed, but the Act was passed, both on Second Reading and on Third Reading, without a single vote against it.
Mr Frederick Macquisten
, Argyll
Does my right hon. Friend not know that I used all the power I could in Committee to get him to accept the reasonable view that a man is entitled to liberty to work as long as he likes, so long as he is working for himself?
Mr George Garro-Jones
, Hackney South
Has the right hon. Gentleman read the remarks of the right hon. Member for Hemel Hempstead (Mr. Davidson), and will he forward to him a copy of his reply, in the hope that it will satisfy him as well as the other hon. Members?
Mr William Joynson-Hicks
, Twickenham
I do not know that I am called upon to answer for my right hon. colleague, but I have heard from him that his remarks were entirely misrepresented.
Commander Hon. Joseph Kenworthy
, Kingston upon Hull Central
Will these remarks also be sent to the right hon. and learned Member for Ealing (Sir H. Nield)?
Sir Herbert Nield
, Ealing
Has my right hon. Friend any grievance against the statement that I made, that it was an unfortunate utterance at that particular moment?
Mr William Joynson-Hicks
, Twickenham
I Hope there will never be any question of a personal grievance between my right hon. and learned Friend and myself.
The other chamber of Parliament, i.e. the House of Lords when said in the Commons, and the House of Commons when said in the Lords.
The Second Reading is the most important stage for a Bill. It is when the main purpose of a Bill is discussed and voted on. If the Bill passes it moves on to the Committee Stage. Further information can be obtained from factsheet L1 on the UK Parliament website.
In a normal session there are up to ten standing committees on bills. Each has a chair and from 16 to 50 members. Standing committee members on bills are appointed afresh for each new bill by the Committee of Selection which is required to take account of the composition of the House of Commons (ie. party proportions) as well as the qualification of members to be nominated. The committees are chaired by a member of the Chairmen's Panel (whose members are appointed by the Speaker). In standing committees the Chairman has much the same function as the Speaker in the House of Commons. Like the Speaker, a chairman votes only in the event of a tie, and then usually in accordance with precedent. The committees consider each bill clause by clause and may make amendments. There are no standing committees in the House of Lords.
The House of Commons votes by dividing. Those voting Aye (yes) to any proposition walk through the division lobby to the right of the Speaker and those voting no through the lobby to the left. In each of the lobbies there are desks occupied by Clerks who tick Members' names off division lists as they pass through. Then at the exit doors the Members are counted by two Members acting as tellers. The Speaker calls for a vote by announcing "Clear the Lobbies". In the House of Lords "Clear the Bar" is called. Division Bells ring throughout the building and the police direct all Strangers to leave the vicinity of the Members’ Lobby. They also walk through the public rooms of the House shouting "division". MPs have eight minutes to get to the Division Lobby before the doors are closed. Members make their way to the Chamber, where Whips are on hand to remind the uncertain which way, if any, their party is voting. Meanwhile the Clerks who will take the names of those voting have taken their place at the high tables with the alphabetical lists of MPs' names on which ticks are made to record the vote. When the tellers are ready the counting process begins - the recording of names by the Clerk and the counting of heads by the tellers. When both lobbies have been counted and the figures entered on a card this is given to the Speaker who reads the figures and announces "So the Ayes [or Noes] have it". In the House of Lords the process is the same except that the Lobbies are called the Contents Lobby and the Not Contents Lobby. Unlike many other legislatures, the House of Commons and the House of Lords have not adopted a mechanical or electronic means of voting. This was considered in 1998 but rejected. Divisions rarely take less than ten minutes and those where most Members are voting usually take about fifteen. Further information can be obtained from factsheet P9 at the UK Parliament site.
The Opposition are the political parties in the House of Commons other than the largest or Government party. They are called the Opposition because they sit on the benches opposite the Government in the House of Commons Chamber. The largest of the Opposition parties is known as Her Majesty's Opposition. The role of the Official Opposition is to question and scrutinise the work of Government. The Opposition often votes against the Government. In a sense the Official Opposition is the "Government in waiting".
