Major BARNES:

The hon. Gentleman in charge of the Bill has shown some resentment of the manner in which my hon. Friend the Member for West Middlesbrough (Mr. T. Thomson) has dealt with the Amendment. He is not, I am sure, averse to hon. Members attempting to make themselves familiar with matters that conic before them, and his resentment no doubt was solely directed against the form in which my hon. Friend presented his argument. The hon. Gentleman cannot resent the attempts of some of us who understand what is happening under this Clause, in view of the fact that most of us have received from a number of quarters serious representations. My hon. Friend behind me spoke with special authority for the Urban Districts Association, and I think the Minister in charge of the Bill has himself admitted that he put forward a case which needed a reply. Whether that reply has been satisfactory to my hon. Friend, I do not know. It is all very well to say that the Municipal Corporation Associations have conic to an agreement on this matter. But one knows there are often differences of opinion even inside associations. Sometimes very important members of associations find that their interests are not quite the same as those of other members, and a Minister who is as skilful as my hon. Friend is very often able to come to an agreement by satisfying the more influential members of the association, while leaving those who are less influential not yet satisfied. I do not think that in addressing himself to the case my hon. Friend finally disposed of it. I understand his case to he that, under the Act of 1919, it became compulsory to transfer these generating stations, and, therefore it was necessary to make some provision there by which the owner of the station could get a supply. My hon. Friend says that that is all gone, that there is no compulsion now, that no owner of a generating station need sell it, and, conversely, that no joint electricity authority need buy it; and that, therefore, the transfer of a generating station will now take place with full knowledge of the position in which both buyer and seller will find themselves after the transfer has taken place, in view of Clause 15. In other words, a person who is going to sell a station now takes Clause 15 into account and fixes his price accordingly, while an authority which is going to buy a station has to face Clause 15, and will take that into account. Therefore, the one will get as high a price, and the other will give as low a price, as he can.