Orders of the Day — Development (Loan Guarantees and Grants) [Money].

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at on 16 July 1929.

Alert me about debates like this

Sir H. YOUNG:

Is the right hon. Gentleman laying it down as a general principle that the Government claims authority to spend public money in advance of its being voted by Parliament I It is certainly a principle which we should resist on these benches and I hope it is a proposition which hon. Members opposite will resist. I hope it is not a principle which will be laid down by any responsible Government. The task of the Government is to obtain the authority of Parliament for its expenditure before it is undertaken, and when it fails to do so it is guilty of a dereliction of its strict duty. We are entitled to ask the right hon. Gentleman for an assurance that there will be no general expenditure of this sort without obtaining the proper authority, if necessary by a Supplementary Estimate. These surely are the requirements of financial regularity.

Let me proceed to the general principle of the legislation which is before us this afternoon. I suggest that the Government to-day is not playing so distinguished a part as it did a few days ago when it came to obtain the authority of Parliament for expenditure on Colonial development. It then appeared in the new clothes of the late Conservative administration and it looked better than it does to-day in these cast off garments. The trade facilities scheme has been abandoned. Quasi, I have a parental affection for that proposal, and I confess that it was not without a natural tear that I saw it die in the last Parliament. At the time I thought it was a natural death, and I have some doubts as to whether its resuscitation is not somewhat unnatural. If I may outline a point of view about the matter it is this. On the whole it may be just worth while to resuscitate trade facilities in the manner proposed by the Government as long as its work is very carefully watched indeed, but I have a doubt and a fear that even with the most careful watching it might not turn out to waste more time and money than it does good. For these reasons; The scheme hat, been revived now with one fresh limitation and one fresh extension. The limitation is this. When trade facilities was first introduced a guarantee could be given to any undertaking as long as it was calculated to promote employment. In its revived form it is subject to the limitation that the undertaking must be one with statutory powers. I can readily understand why that limitation is introduced, and I do not think it is unfair to say that it is to give the scheme a colour which will be more acceptable to the supporters of the right hon. Gentleman. I sympathise and understand the right hon. Gentleman's desire to paint it in a manner which will make it more acceptable to them, but from the point of view of the practical utility of the scheme it is bad. As a matter of fact, it will be found that amongst the schemes which were formerly advanced and promoted under trade facilities, those which were the most characteristically beneficial in the way of providing employment were purely private undertakings and would not home under the classification of statutory companies at all. I regret the necessity that a party attitude has compelled the right hon. Gentleman to impose the restriction.