Orders of the Day — Prices and Incomes (No. 2) Bill

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 10 July 1967.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Mr Iain Macleod Mr Iain Macleod , Enfield West 12:00, 10 July 1967

I beg to move Amendment No. 11, in page 2, line 9, at the end to insert: 'or until 11th August 1968 whichever is the earlier'. The side heading of the Clause, on which we have had some discussion recently, is, "Power to extend periods of standstill under Part II of Prices and Incomes Act 1966."

Part II is not yet in operation, but it will be presumably when an Order on the Notice Paper is approved, if it is, by Parliament. It therefore follows that we are doubly against the Clause, against the original 1966 Act, and against the power that Clause 1 takes to extend it.

Subsection (2,a) of Clause I allows the standstill provision to continue … for a period ending ten days after the date of publication of the Board's report …". Subsection (2,b), to which we seek to add words, lays down that if notice is so given then the Secretary of State can direct by Order for a period up to six months. We wish to cut off this period at the date of 11th August, 1968, a year from the expiry of Part IV.

One of the main reasons why we seek to do this is that we have become more and more convinced—and there is a great deal of mounting evidence—that the Government have no intention of relinquishing powers in the real sense of the word this August, next August or any other August. What they do will vary. Part IV will come to an end, but, as I prophesied many months ago, something almost equally unattractive—the extended Part take its place. It is true—and this matter was exhaustively discussed in Committee—that this Bill will expire, but the original powers available to the Government under the permanent legislation of 1966 will go on.

I dare say that we will have another schoolmasterly lecture from the First Secretary of State, as on the last occasion, either about drafting or about the meaning of the words. My reference to the courts was not that I thought it directly related to the last Amendment, but simply to suggest to the First Secretary of State that he is not the best person to talk about dubiety in the courts in relation to the Prices and Incomes Act, because the Court of Appeal has found, as we warned it would long ago, that the main provision of Section 29 does not mean what he and presumably the Attorney-General, who no doubt advised him, thought it meant.

We have no reason to put any confidence in the words of the Government. The first reason for this is a statement made by the Prime Minister, which has been quoted on a number of occasions, when he was asked on B.B.C.1 on the programme "24-Hours" When the powers of the Act come to an end in August, Prime Minister, won't there have to be a continuation of them?", to which the Prime Minister replied, In terms of legislative powers, no. It is clear that the Bill extends the legislative powers with regard to the control of prices and that it goes far beyond the period of Part IV, which, we were assured, was to be a temporary measure, and there is no assurance that this so-called temporary measure will not be extended again and again and again until this Parliament in due course comes to an end. The Prime Minister has gone back on what he clearly said to the nation in that quotation which I have just given.

9.0 p.m.

My second point—I distinguish my first and my third; the second relates to the First Secretary and is in no sense an accusation of breach of faith as the first certainly is—relates to a matter which I should now like to clear up. The First Secretary will remember making a statement on powers on 17th April and he will remember a number of questions which I put to him designed to elicit from him an admission that these powers were really not for 12 but for 18 months. I said: Secondly, it is now quite clear that this is an extension not for 12 months, but for 18 months. That is to say, on the last day or so of a year to which the proposals relate, the First Secretary could make as many references as he wished. The First Secretary replied: When the right hon. Gentleman says 18 months I think that he is adding together two things which are not in the same category. He went on to say: The purpose of the arrangement that the Order can continue after the powers have lapsed is to see that the six months' power of delay does not operate unequally in one case or another."—[OFFICIAL REPORT, 17th April, 1967; Vol. 745, c. 94–5.] I should be grateful if the right hon. Gentleman would clear that up.

I do not think that I put together two matters which were not in the same category. In any case, is the point I made valid or not? Is it possible for the First Secretary to make as many Orders as he wishes within weeks, or days, or hours, of the expiry of the Bill? Could such Orders go on for a further six months? If so, is it not abundantly clear that in fact the powers which are here being taken are not for 12, but for 18 months, and that the House ought to judge them accordingly?