This Expiring Laws Bill, as the members of the Seanad know, is a kind of hardy annual. It used to be a much more formidable affair than it is this time. Some years ago I think there were as many as 20 Acts which had to be re-enacted about this time of the year. Now the number is down to six or seven. The Bill proposes to continue for a further year the same statutes which appear in Parts I and II of the Schedule to the Expiring Laws Act, 1940.
A memorandum regarding the Acts to be continued has been circulated to Senators, and I hope that the explanations given for continuing the various Acts will prove satisfactory. Of the nine Acts affected by the Bill provision has already been made for the repeal of three. I refer to the Poor Relief (Dublin) Act, 1929, the Local Government (Temporary Provisions) Act, 1923, and the Local Authorities (Combined Purchasing) Act, 1925. This latter Act will go when the Local Authorities (Combined Purchasing) Act, 1939, comes into operation, but as it may not be feasible, owing to the emergency, to give effect to that Act before the 1st January, it is necessary to continue the temporary measure. As regards the other two Acts, both will be repealed when the Public Assistance Act, 1939, and the Local Government Act, 1941, come into operation.
I might add that the Acts appearing in the Schedule are reviewed from time to time to consider whether legislation might be introduced to give permanence to any of them. Apart from the three Acts already mentioned, it is not considered desirable at present to make provision for any of the remainder. It will be appreciated that the Schedule of enactments to be continued has shrunk considerably over a number of years and we are now left with a mere handful of Acts which will shrink further as opportunity presents itself.