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London Local Authorities Bill [HL]

moved Amendment No. 1: 1: Clause 1, page 2, line 30, leave out paragraph (b) The noble Lord said: My Lords, perhaps notwithstanding the lateness of the hour I might be allowed a few introductory words. The promotion of a private Bill can be a long and tortuous process. Noble Lords may be surprised to learn that it was back in July 2005 that the House passed the Second Reading of this Bill. A Bill of this nature is likely to attract opposition from a variety of quarters, and indeed that has been the case. When it was introduced, and as it remains, this Bill is the largest general powers measure promoted by local authorities in this House for very many years. Perhaps that may go a long way to explain why it has taken so long to reach this stage. The subject matter of the Bill is very wide-ranging in nature, dealing with matters as diverse as hostess bars, portable advertisements and overgrown gardens, and many other issues. Opposition to the Bill came from a variety of quarters, including government departments. Originally, 26 petitions were deposited against the Bill and altogether there have been some 17 government reports on it. But I am pleased to report to the House that constructive discussions between the promoters and at least some of the petitioners and government departments led to amendments being made in Committee that have proved acceptable. Not all petitioners were equally satisfied. The Select Committee, assiduously chaired by the noble Baroness, Lady McIntosh of Hudnall, and her colleagues—I see that my noble friend Lady O’Cathain, who was also a member of that Select Committee, is present—sat for 11 days in March 2006 and heard arguments from petitioners on a number of subjects. One of the most contentious, which noble Lords will remember was raised by a number of noble Lords on Second Reading, was that of Lincoln’s Inn Fields. Noble Lords will no doubt be pleased to learn that the Select Committee decided that those particular provisions should be struck out and they do not appear in the Bill before us this evening. The Bill was then considered by an Unopposed Bill Committee in June last year over two days, and since then it has been awaiting this stage. Noble Lords may be interested to know why that that long delay occurred because there were further discussions between the promoters and various bodies concerned with Part 4, which deals with second-hand dealers. That innocent phrase includes the whole of the London trade in arts and antiques. My noble friend Lord Brooke of Sutton Mandeville, who apologises for not being present, proved to be a doughty champion of that trade. With that in mind, I shall now describe briefly the various amendments that are grouped with Amendment No. 1. These amendments reflect the decision of the promoters of the Bill to withdraw Part 4, which deals with the registration of second-hand dealers. Although that part is well precedented in other Private Acts, it attracted very strenuous opposition from the British Art Market Federation, which petitioned against the Bill and appeared before the Select Committee. It was only after that stage had been completed that the promoters became aware of the opposition of no fewer than four government departments; namely, the DCMS, which had the interests of the art market at heart; the DTI, which raised concerns about internet dealers such as eBay; the Cabinet Office Better Regulation Unit, whose remit is to ensure that regulation is required only where necessary; and, perhaps most importantly, the Home Office, which objected to the fact that the police were to be given powers under Part 4 to carry out investigatory and enforcement activities. Given that the main purpose of Part 4 is to deal with the market in stolen goods, the promoters came to the view that without police powers the legislation would be largely fruitless. They considered the great weight of the opposition against them and came to the conclusion that it was so great that, had Part 4 survived this House, it might well have fallen in another place. We look forward to seeing how the Government take forward the whole issue of the registration of dealers in second-hand goods in the light of the consultation exercise, which I understand is to be undertaken by the Home Office. I express my gratitude to the members of the Select Committee who argued, on balance, that the part should stay. I am also grateful to my noble friend Lord Brooke of Sutton Mandeville for withdrawing the amendments that he tabled at the request of the BAMF. Amendments Nos. 1, 3, 28 to 38 and 44 all involve the removal of Part 4. I beg to move.