Mr James MacColl: I feel I should ask for the indulgence of the House as a maiden speaker. Although I cannot pretend that it is a long time since I addressed the House, it is a long time since it has been left to me to decide what I shall say and how I shall say it. I am, therefore, happy to choose a Friday on a Private Member's Bill for this dangerous immersion, rather than to speak on a more vital partisan...
Mr James MacColl: I do not know that it need be a disadvantage. Surely, if one describes a steel band with certain particulars of the sort of people required, one would immediately convey what was wanted. In effect, my hon. Friend the Member for Putney (Mr. Hugh Jenkins) is accepting the position that if, in a hamhanded way, one produces an advertisement emphasising the racial origins of the people rather than...
Mr James MacColl: Is the right hon. Gentleman using the word "English" in its strictly legal interpretation, as opposed to the Scottish sense of humour?
Mr James MacColl: I beg to move, That this House doth agree with the Lords in the said Amendment. It might be convenient, Mr. Speaker, if, with this Amendment, we were to take Amendment No. 4. These Amendments will limit the power of local authorities to have compulsory purchase outside the general improvement area, and the phrase now adopted by another place makes it clear that it is not intended to have a...
Mr James MacColl: I beg to move, That this House doth agree with the Lords in the said Amendment. The Amendment makes clear that an authority's discretion to dispose of land is limited in the sense that it has to go to the Minister for approval. There is no point, therefore, in laying down limits on such discretion at an earlier point.
Mr James MacColl: I beg to move, That this House doth agree with the Lords in the said Amendment.
Mr James MacColl: These two Lords Amendments, Nos. 6 and 7, relax slightly the conditions governing a local authority's letting of land. They deal mainly with short lettings for periods not exceeding seven years, in which cases it may not be so easy to define what is meant by the best rent obtainable. The Amendments will make it easier to deal with shorter periods in respect of land.
Mr James MacColl: I beg to move, That this House doth agree with the Lords in the said Amendment. This is a drafting Amendment. Hon. Members opposite were anxious to have these matters split. It was not possible to reach agreement on the form in which it should be done, but my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary said that we would look at it again. The Amendment is the result of further consideration.
Mr James MacColl: The Amendment does not alter the content of the Bill. The court has discretion as regards the state of the building and costs under the Bill as drafted. Those discretions are treated separately in this way. On the general point which my hon. Friend raises, it is within the discretion of the court.
Mr James MacColl: I beg to move, That this House doth disagree with the Lords in the said Amendment.
Mr James MacColl: This matter has been fully discussed on Second Reading, in Committee and on Report in this House and there is no doubt that there is a strong divergence of view. The Government—and, I hope and believe, the majority of the House—take the view that the arrangements we reached under the Bill were the fairest arrangements as between the two different points of view, the two views being that...
Mr James MacColl: I beg to move, That the House doth agree with the Lords in the said Amendment. This is in the form of new Clause B, and deals with a matter which was discussed both on the Housing (Subsidies) Bill in 1967 and on this Bill. The House will remember that on Report we introduced a new Clause which provided power for my right hon. Friend to make Orders to extend the option mortgage scheme. Both...
Mr James MacColl: A strong Government does not need to be worried about being ragged over a matter like this. We have always said that we were not against it in principle. We had a diplomatic undertanding about getting the lending agencies to agree, which was not helped by the demagogic activities of hon. Gentlemen opposite. But by good humour and calmness, we reached agreement. The hon. Gentleman can have his...
Mr James MacColl: I am glad that hon. Gentlemen opposite do not intend to say that this is in their election manifesto. We are willing to accept the Amendment because it makes a cleaner draft of the Bill.
Mr James MacColl: I beg to move, That this House doth agree with the Lords in the said Amendment. I have no hesitation in paying tribute to this Amendment, because it came from the Law Society, not the Opposition, and it is an improvement.
Mr James MacColl: It was pointed out on Report, but the Law Society suggested a way in which it could be done. Our difficulty was finding a way of doing it. This does it and I think that we should accept the Amendment.
Mr James MacColl: I beg to move, That this House doth agree with the Lords in the said Amendment.
Mr James MacColl: These two Amendments deal with the conditions under which Clause 79, dealing with premiums. operates. The first has the effect that this condition will be imposed only for leases granted from now on. This is because of the difficulty which has arisen over leases already in existence and the great variety of terms which the fertile brains of conveyances in different parts of the country have...
Mr James MacColl: I beg to move, That this House doth agree with the Lords in the said Amendment. This, again, is a point that the Law Society made to us, that it is not uncommon for leases to permit the assignment of the lease of the whole premises let while prohibiting assignment or subletting of part of them only.
Mr James MacColl: I beg to move, That this House doth agree with the Lords in the said Amendment. The last of the three conditions in Clause 79(2) is that it must be possible to assign or underlet the tenancy and, in connection with this, the Clause provides that a tenancy with a term making a request for consent dependent on a previous offer to surrender the tenancy would not satisfy this condition. The Law...
