Abolition of GLC and Metropolitan County Councils

Part of Orders of the Day — Local Government Bill (Clause 1) – in the House of Commons at 8:45 pm on 13 December 1984.

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Photo of Jack Straw Jack Straw Shadow Spokesperson (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) 8:45, 13 December 1984

My hon. Friend says that it Was due to welfare milk. There was milk for the Conservative Tellers even before welfare milk was available to Labour Tellers, because they could afford it. That sociological fact—the linking of social class to height—was confirmed by a recent report from the Department of Health and Social Security. [Interruption.] The hon. Member for Bury, North (Mr. Burt) says that he is only 5 ft 5 in. That proves the point that there are some odd genetic groups, such as that to which my hon. Friend the Member for Newham, North-West belongs. I was saying that the report published earlier this week by the Department of Health and Social Security shows the direct correlation between social class and height.

Amendment No. 36 extends by one year the abolition date referred to in the Bill. Amendment No. 38, an alternative amendment, states: The abolition date shall be such date as the Secretary of State may by order appoint after he has received from each authority or body established under this Act a report upon their capacity to carry out functions of the Greater London Council or of a metropolitan county council which it is proposed to transfer to them under this Act and he has published such reports.

You may confirm, Mr. Dean, that, although we discussed amendment No. 46 in a group yesterday, it will be voted upon after this group, so it may be for the convenience at least of my hon. Friends if I remind them of the content of amendment No. 46. It ensures that if the precepting authorities go ahead, there are direct elections to them rather than just indirect elections. As I fancy that there will be no clause stand part debate, I should like to make it clear beyond peradventure that we are opposed to the abolition of both the GLC and the metropolitan counties.

Last night the Government suffered a serious setback. They have a majority over the Labour party of 190 and over all other parties, including Irish Members, who, as far as I know, were not here to vote in great numbers, of 141. For the Government to have their majority reduced to 23 was, as my hon. Friend the Member for Copeland (Dr. Cunningham) said, a moral defeat and a major humiliation. There is no question about that. The Government have an enormous majority, with all the dangers to the future of the Conservative party that the former Foreign Secretary, the right hon. Member for Cambridgeshire, South-East (Mr. Pym), so sagely warned about during the election. In any other Parliament that would have been an arithmetical defeat, and the proposal would have been abandoned.