Orders of the Day — ELECTRICITY (SUPPLY) BILL [Lords].

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons am ar 25 Gorffennaf 1922.

Danfonwch hysbysiad imi am ddadleuon fel hyn

Photo of Mr Arthur Neal Mr Arthur Neal , Sheffield, Hillsborough

I am very sorry that the hon. Member for Hampstead (Mr. G. Balfour) has made a protest against me personally. The last thing I would wish to do would be to treat either him or any other hon. Member with disrespect. I cannot admire the complacency with which he made his complaint. My hon. Friend many times spoke in Committee, but not, as representing the power companies. We had that iterated and reiterated many times. He assured us that he was only taking part in our discussions as the hon. Member for Hampstead. A position of very great difficulty arose, which jeopardised Clause 15. The municipal corporations were using all their influence with hon. Members and many hon. Members well knew it; and associations were also using their influence to defeat Clause 15. By Clause 15 the Government must stand. It was given to the power companies, and they are entitled to it. Upon that, what was the position I took up? I was put into a position of difficulty by the course that was taken by the hon. Member for Whitechapel (Mr. Kiley), who formally moved the first of a series of Amendments to wine out Clause 15.

Hon. Members who served on the Committee will bear me out that I stated perfectly impartially to the Committee the case for both sides, and then I said that it was possible to get concessions. Concessions from whom? From the hon. Member for Hampstead, who was not speaking for the power companies? Certainly not. From the persons interested. I will quote from the OFFICIAL REPORT of the Debate to justify myself. I said that we might get practical concessions from the persons interested. I asked my hon. Friend, who has charged me with something approaching a breach of faith, was he the person interested that I was to approach? He told the Committee many times over that he was there as a disinterested Member of Parliament to do his part in the shaping of this Bill. I did the only thing that could be done. I got into communication with the persons interested, the power companies, an association of which my hon. Friend is a Member. It was perfectly open to that association—they chose their own delegation—to have selected my hon. Friend to come and discuss the matter with me. I wish they had done so.