SPECIAL REPORT FROM THE SELECT COMMITTEE ON LOCAL LEGISLATION TOGETHER WITH THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE COMMITTEE. Ordered, by The House of Commons, to be Printed, LONDON: PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY HIS MAJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE To be purchased directly from H.M. STATIONERY OFFICE at the following addresses: Adastral House, Kingsway, London, W.C.2; 120, George Street, Edinburgh; York Street, Manchester; 1, St. Andrew's Crescent, Cardiff; 15, Donegall Square West, Belfast; 1928. Price 1s. 6d. net ORDER OF REFERENCE. [Wednesday, 9th February, 1927]:-Local Legislation Committee, Ordered, That the Committee of Selection do nominate a Committee, not exceeding Fifteen Members, to be called the Local Legislation Committee, to whom shall be committed all Private Bills promoted by municipal and other local authorities by which it is proposed to create powers relating to Police, Sanitary, or other Local Government regulations in conflict with, deviation from, or excess of the provisions of the general law. Ordered, That Standing Orders 119, 150, and 173a apply to all such Bills. Ordered, That the Committee have power to send for persons, papers, and records. Ordered, That Four be the quorum. Ordered, That if the Committee shall report to the Committee of Selection that any Clauses of any Bill referred to them (other than Clauses containing Police, Sanitary, or other Local Government regulations) are such as, having regard to the terms of reference, it is not in their opinion necessary or advisable for them to deal with, the Committee of Selection shall thereupon refer the Bill to a Select Committee, who shall consider those Clauses and so much of the Preamble of the Bill as relates thereto, and shall determine the expenditure (if any) to be authorised in respect of the parts of the Bill referred to them. That the Committee shall deal with the remaining Clauses of such Bill, and so much of the Preamble as relates thereto, and shall determine the period and mode of repayment of any money authorised by the Select Committee to be borrowed and shall report the whole Bill to the House, stating in their Report what parts of the Bill have been considered by each Committee. Ordered, That the Committee have power, if they so determine, to sit as two Committees, and in that event to apportion the Bills referred to the Committee between the two Committees, each of which shall have the full powers of and be subject to the instructions which apply to the undivided Committee, and that Four be the quorum of each of the two Committees.(Captain Hacking.) The cost of printing and publishing this Report is estimated by the Stationery Office at £36 5s. Od. COMMITTEE OF SELECTION. [Thursday, 17th February, 1927]:-The Local Legislation [Thursday, 3rd March, 1927]:-Sir Francis Watson is dis- [Thursday, 24th March, 1927]:-Sir Thomas Davies is [Thursday, 19th May, 1927]:-Mr. Wells is added. [Tuesday, 12th July, 1927]:-The following Bill is added to the Bills to be considered by the Local Legislation Committee :- West Cheshire Water Board [Lords]. [Tuesday, 6th December, 1927] :-The following Bill, which was added to the Bills to be considered by the Local Legislation SPECIAL REPORT. THE SELECT COMMITTEE to whom were referred all Private Bills promoted by Municipal and other Local Authorities, by which it is proposed to create powers relating to Police. Sanitary, or other Local Government Regulations in conflict with, deviation from, or excess of the provisions of the General Law, have agreed to the following SPECIAL REPORT: 1. Your Committee met on 23rd February and sat on two days as one Committee. Acting on the powers given by Order of the House, they also sat as two Committees; Section A sat on forty-three days, and Section B on thirty days. 2. Instructions were again issued for the preparation of detailed statistics of : (a) Population, area, rateable and assessable values, rates levied in the district for the last three years, and existing loans. (b) The Staff of the Local Authority. Particulars were also required as to the Permissive Acts adopted by the Local Authority, and a statement whether any powers have been sought under the Public Health Acts Amendment Act, 1907, and, if so, with what result; these particulars were required in order to show how far the Authority, asking for extended powers, had utilised to the utmost the powers already authorised by Parliament. 3. Ten Bills originating in the House of Commons, and eight originating in the House of Lords, have been considered. 4. Most of the Bills which Your Committee have considered during this, as in previous Sessions, contained provisions relating to Public Health, sanitation and other matters, which were set out in the Special Report in 1925. 5. In the Buxton Corporation Bill Your Committee had regard, as directed by an Instruction of the House of 1st March, to the provisions of Section 56 of the Public Health Act, 1925; but in this and in several subsequent Bills they have allowed powers in excess of the Public Act, enabling such Corporations. to let specified premises for the purposes of theatrical entertainments, subject to certain restrictions of total expenditure. Your Committee have however laid down the principle that a Corporation may let such premises only in consideration of a fixed rent or a share in the profits or receipts, and may not incur any liability or losses in respect of any such performance. These provisions have only been granted in view of the special circumstances of certain Health Resorts, and are not of general application. 6. In the Chepping Wycombe Corporation Bill Your Committee allowed a Clause making provision for the prevention of flooding. The Corporation were therein authorised (a) to dredge, cleanse, and remove weeds from any blocked up water-course, and (b) to apportion the cost incurred thereby amongst the owners of land fronting upon the adjoining water-course so cleared. 7. In the Leeds Corporation Bill Your Committee allowed. a Clause by which the Corporation are empowered to license and regulate sky signs within the city. 8. In the London County Council (General Powers) Bill Your Committee, while allowing a Clause sanctioning the principle of the licensing of street traders, came to the following general conclusions :-(a) That it is strongly desirable that the system of licensing should be uniform throughout the Metropolitan Boroughs, which could best be obtained by a set of Model Bye-Laws drawn up by the Home Office. (b) That the organisation and charges for cleansing should if possible also be uniform, at least in the London area, and (c) That in licensing, a distinction should be made between perishable and nonperishable goods. In the case of the former the protection of the Public Health demands the very strictest care, but as regards non-perishable goods Your Committee consider that a much greater latitude should be allowed than is the case at present, in the number of commodities one man may be licensed to sell. 9. Your Committee also allowed a Clause in the same Bill making it compulsory to provide adequate light by day and during certain hours of the night in the staircases of tenement buildings. 10. In the Salford Corporation Bill [Lords] Your Committee allowed a Clause giving the Corporation power to cut off supplies of electricity where charges are not wholly paid. 11. In the Wallasey Corporation Bill [Lords] Your Committee allowed a Clause authorising a discount of five per centum for payment of the general rate within a period to be prescribed by the Corporation. 12. Your Committee favour the inclusion in Local Legislation Bills of a Common Good Clause. A Corporation would thereby be entitled, subject to suitable provisions, to accept, hold and administer any gift of property whether real or personal for the benefit of the inhabitants of the borough, or for any public purpose connected with the borough. Where the purposes of the gift are purposes for which the Corporation are already empowered to expend money raised from the local rate, they |