Oral Answers to Questions — Scotland – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 16 December 1964.
Mr Hugh Brown
, Glasgow Provan
12:00,
16 December 1964
asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what action he will take to implement the recommendations of the Guest Committee Report on Scottish Licensing Laws, Command Paper No. 2021.
Mr William Ross
, Kilmarnock
The Government are not at present contemplating any legislation on this subject.
Mr Hugh Brown
, Glasgow Provan
Does my right hon. Friend not agree that this is a very urgent problem in Glasgow? Is he aware that within the next 10 years more than 200 displaced publicans will be seeking very few sites and that this is a most unhealthy position? In the light of this and of the recommendations of the Guest Committee Report, will he consider at least having discussions with the district valuer and the corporation to see whether some temporary measures can be introduced?
Mr William Ross
, Kilmarnock
I am prepared to look at anything which my hon. Friend suggests because I appreciate his social concern in this matter.
Mr George Younger
, Ayr
Will the right hon. Gentleman say if he is considering the recommendations of the Guest Committee on the subject of local veto polls, as they are causing great confusion, expense arid worry to people in Scotland?
Mr William Ross
, Kilmarnock
We have had the recommendations made by the Guest Committee and are considering them all.
Laws are the rules by which a country is governed. Britain has a long history of law making and the laws of this country can be divided into three types:- 1) Statute Laws are the laws that have been made by Parliament. 2) Case Law is law that has been established from cases tried in the courts - the laws arise from test cases. The result of the test case creates a precedent on which future cases are judged. 3) Common Law is a part of English Law, which has not come from Parliament. It consists of rules of law which have developed from customs or judgements made in courts over hundreds of years. For example until 1861 Parliament had never passed a law saying that murder was an offence. From the earliest times courts had judged that murder was a crime so there was no need to make a law.
Secretary of State was originally the title given to the two officials who conducted the Royal Correspondence under Elizabeth I. Now it is the title held by some of the more important Government Ministers, for example the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
