First Schedule. — (PART I.: Statutory Provisions regarding Functions of Town Councils of small burghs transferred to County Councils.)

Part of Orders of the Day — Local Government (Scotland) Bill. – in the House of Commons at on 26 April 1929.

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Photo of Mr George Hardie Mr George Hardie , Glasgow Springburn

The point to which I was drawing attention was emphasised by the statement just made by the Secretary of State for Scotland. He alluded to the district councils and detailed work. If we had been dealing with two separate bodies there would have been no necessity for me to introduce this question, but the district council has no being outside the county council. The district council is subject in much of what it has to do to the county council. If I were desirous of delaying the House I could ask the Secretary of State to explain the duties of the county council and the duties of the district council, but I do not want unnecessarily to waste time. But I want it to be recognised that it is not correct to speak of their performing two separate and distinct classes of work, because their duty is dove-tailed. Had it not been for the Amendment accepted from this side during the discussion on the Bill there would have been no district councils at all, proving conclusively that the original intention was that the whole of the work should be undertaken by the county councils. This is part of the work of the county council, and though the position may seem to be complicated by the bringing in of district councils no one can argue that it is not the work of the county council that is being carried out. Members of the county councils can take part in the work of the district councils. Is not such a member performing county council work when he is on the district council? He may be a member of a committee on the county council which is responsible for delegating certain things to the district council. Possibly he will be a member of that district council ex officio. That is contemplated under the Bill. In Clause 25, Sub-section (2), it states: There shall be established for every district a district council which shall consist of the number of members specified in the district council scheme. The members of the county council for the electoral divisions within the district shall be ex officio members of the district council and the other members of the district council shall be elected for the electoral divisions within the district or for wards forming part thereof as may be provided in the scheme." I think that is quite clear, and that the distinction between the work done on the county council and on the district council is so fine that you could not insert a thin sheet of paper between the two categories. The work is the same, and on the day the promise was given to us we all thought., and I am sure it was what the Secretary of State had in his mind, that it would be treated according to the custom then prevailing. We have heard from the hon. Member for Peebles (Mr. Westwood) what his payment consisted of, and on the day when we got that concession we understood that the common practice then existing was to be followed. Now we get the other House coming in to interfere with this custom. This interference takes place, not in the early stages of the discussion on the Bill, but at the last possible moment when the Bill can be discussed. In view of this interference with custom, we feel that the Secretary of State should put more iron into his back, if not into his soul, and tell those in the other place that we are not going to accept such dictation at the last moment.