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FROM THE

SELECT COMMITTEE

ON

COMMONS

TOGETHER WITH THE

PROCEEDINGS OF THE COMMITTEE AND
MINUTES OF EVIDENCE.

Ordered, by The House of Commons, to be Printed,

16th July, 1924.

LONDON:

PRINTED & PUBLISHED BY HIS MAJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE. To be purchased directly from H.M. STATIONERY OFFICE at the following addresses: Imperial House, Kingsway, London, W.C.2; 28, Abingdon Street, London, S.W.1; York Street, Manchester; 1, St. Andrew's Crescent, Cardiff;

or 120, George Street, Edinburgh;

or through any Bookseller.

1924

Price 6d. net.

131

ORDER OF REFERENCE.

[Tuesday, 17th June, 1924]:-Commons,-Ordered, That a

Select Committee be appointed to consider every Report made

by the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries certifying the

expediency of any Provisional Order for the enclosure or regula-

tion of a Common, and presented to the House during the present

Session, before a Bill be brought in for the confirmation of such

Order.

Ordered, That it be an Instruction to the Committee that they

have power in respect of each such Provisional Order to inquire

and report to the House whether the same should be confirmed

by Parliament; and, if so, whether with or without modification,

and in the event of their being of opinion that the same should

not be confirmed, except subject to modifications, to report such

modifications accordingly with a view to such Provisional Order

being remitted to the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries.

Ordered, That the Comtnittee do consist of Twelve Members,

Seven to be nominated by the House and Five by the Committee
of Selection.

Lord Apsley, Sir Gervase Beckett, Sir John Brunner, Captain

Bullock, Mr. Arthur Henderson (Cardiff), Mr. O'Grady, and Mr.

Piers Thompson nominated Members of the Select Committee.

Ordered, That the Committee have power to send for persons,

papers, and records.

Ordered, That Five be the quorum.-(Mr. Frederick Hall.)

[Wednesday, 18th June, 1924]:-Nominated by the Com-

mittee of Selection.

Sir H. Buckingham, Mr. Ellis Davies, Mr. Forestier-Walker,
Mr. Gibbins, Mr. W. R. Smith.

[Tuesday, 20th May, 1924]:-Commons Act, 1876,-Copy
presented, of Report by the Minister of Agriculture and
Fisheries upon an application for a Provisional Order for the
regulation of Old Hills Common, in the county of Worcester
[by Act]; to lie upon the Table.

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REPORT.

THE SELECT COMMITTEE ON COMMONS who were appointed to consider every Report made by the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries certifying the expediency of any Provisional Order for the enclosure or regulation of a Common, and presented to the House during the present Session, before a Bill be brought in for the confirmation of such Order, and who were empowered in respect of each such Provisional Order to inquire and report to the House whether the same should be confirmed by Parliament; and, if so, whether with or without modification, and in the event of their being of opinion that the same should not be confirmed, except subject to modifications, to report such modifications accordingly with a view to such Provisional Order being remitted to the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries,

Have considered the Report of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries certifying the expediency of a Provisional Order for the regulation of Old Hills Common, in the county of Worcester; and they are of opinion that the same ought not to be confirmed; and have agreed to report the Minutes of Evidence taken before them to the House.

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Report of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries certifying the expediency of a Provisional Order for the regulation of Old Hills Common, in the county of Worcester, read.

In support of the proposed Provisional Order :

Mr. A. T. A. DOBSON representing the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, was examined.

Mr. A. H. HASTIE, Mr. A. SLATER, Mr. W. H. S. BRICKELL, Mr. E. C. BOURNE and Mr. C. DEVEREUX, were also examined.

Mr. E. LEE ROWCLIFFE representing the Croome Estate Trustees was examined.

Mr. FRANK H. LEEK, Mr. CHARLES DREW, Mr. ALFRED RODGMAN, Mr. OBED WALTON and Mr. J. W. HARBER, objectors to the proposed Provisional Order, were examined.

The Committee deliberated.

Proposed Provisional Order considered.

Resolved, That the Provisional Order ought not to be confirmed. Ordered, To report accordingly, together with Minutes of Evidence.

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Mr. A. H. HASTIE appeared on behalf of the Applicants for the Order (Earl Beauchamp and his Commoners).

Messrs. LEWIN & Co. appeared as Parliamentary Agents on behalf of Messrs. Rawle Johnstone & Co., Solicitors, for the Earl of Coventry.

Mr. A. T. A. DOBSON, called in; and examined.

Witness.] I am an Assistant Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, and I am before this Committee in order to make the statement which it is usual to make in these cases. I also appear in a second capacity as the person appointed by the Minister to hold the Inquiry into the application. Now, Sir, the application for the regulation of Old Hills Common was received by the Ministry on the 9th May, 1923, and was made by persons claiming to represent one-third of the interests of the common that would be affected by the application. The applicants desired that the regulation should include the improvement of the common and the adjustment of the commonable rights. There were certain reasons put forward by the applicants why an order was desirable and these were three in number. The first was that the rights in common were not limited and were not clearly defined and certain rights were obviously abused, and there were even people who were using the common who were not entitled to use it. The second reason was that periodically there were bands of gipsies who created nuisances on the common-refuse was deposited, animals were allowed to stray, there were fires, and so forth. The third reason which the applicants put forward in favour of the regulation of the common was that it was very desirable that this property, as it was a small

area, should be preserved as a pleasure resort for picnic parties, it being near to the towns of Malvern and Worcester. The Ministry considered that a prima facie case had been made out by the applicants, and they therefore permitted a local Inquiry to be held, which is required by the Act of 1876. That Inquiry, I may mention, was held by myself, and it was for the purpose of hearing all persons desirous of being heard in relation to the subject-matter of the application. There were altogether some seventy or eighty people present at that Inquiry, and among the persons present I think I ought to mention that there were representatives of the Lord of the Manor, Earl Beauchamp, who claimed to be the owner of the soil of the common, the Worcester Town Council, the Malvern Urban District Council, the Upton-on-Severn Rural District Council and the Powick Parish Council. All the persons present, with the exception of the representatives of the Local Authorities that I have mentioned, claimed to have commonable rights over the area to be regulated. I have here a very large map of the common and I have placed before you a small scale map in which the common is shown in green; the larger map will show it on a larger area. In accordance with the requirements of the Act, before holding the Inquiry I made an inspection of the common and went over it from end to end A 3

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