I move: "That the Standing Orders be suspended for the purpose of taking the remaining stages of the Trade Loans (Guarantee) (Amendment) Bill, 1929, to-day."
Public Business. - Trade Loans (Guarantee) (Amendment) Bill, 1929—Second Stage.
Question—"That the Bill be read a Second Time"—put and agreed to.
I second.
Surely it is due to the Seanad that some explanation should be given, or that some justification should be given for this Bill? It asks us to extend the period of the operation of this Act, which has been extended one time and another already. The last information that I read about the matter, apart from what I saw in the newspapers, was that the Minister was in favour of bringing the operations of this Act to an end. It is due to the Seanad, before we are asked to extend the period of its operations, that some explanation should be given, and I think it is quite wrong not only to ask the Seanad to agree to a Second Reading, but to take up all the stages of the Bill without further explanation. I protest against that course.
I am sure that there are grounds for Senator Johnson's remarks. I was informed before this matter was reached that the Minister was unavoidably absent, and I was asked to suggest to the House what were the reasons for this Bill and the more or less urgency for the passing of the Bill now. I do not intend to say more than a word or two. It is due entirely to the fact that certain applications, not necessarily new applications, but old applications have been revived the consideration of which will necessitate legislation. The Minister in the Dáil, speaking on the Second Reading of this Bill, said: "I announced on the Vote for my own Estimate that in my view the Trade Loans (Guarantee) Acts had seemed to have outlived their utility. I based that view on the fact that no new applications were coming forward. I stated that had new applications come forward, or were likely to come forward, we would have brought in the usual legislation. Since I spoke three applications, amounting to a sum of £4,000, which had been approved by the two Ministers concerned, but were waiting completion of official formalities, have taken on new life. It looked at one time as if one was going to be withdrawn, and we were told that it was very doubtful if the second one would be proceeded with. The third was in a peculiar position. We have now been informed that two are likely to be proceeded with. In addition, there was a very old application which had been received by the Advisory Committee and reported on favourably, but it had not at that time been accepted by me." As far as I understand it that Act expires every year and this Bill is to re-enact the Principal Act. I think this is a sufficient illustration of the outlook of the Minister with regard to these cases for which new legislation would be necessary. Such legislation is embodied in this Bill, and these are the reasons why the Minister has introduced it.
Question put and agreed to.
Bill passed through Committee without amendment, reported, received for final consideration and passed.