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XXVII.

Chapter chairman reports the circumstance to the house, when the members still remaining will be enabled to proceed, or such orders will be made as the house may deem necessary.1

chairman

If the chairman be absent, the member next in rotation on When the list of members, who is then present, is to act as chair- absent. man: but in the case of a railway and canal committee, s. 0. 120. only until the general committee shall appoint another chairman, if they think fit.2

in favour of, against,

to private

how pre

All petitions in favour of or against or otherwise relating Petitions to private bills or bills to confirm provisional orders or certificates excepting petitions for additional provision 3-are or relating now presented to the house, not in the usual way of pre- bills; senting other petitions, but by depositing them in the sented. Private Bill Office, where they may be deposited by a 8. O. 205. member, party, or agent. Any petitioner may withdraw Petitions his petition, or his opposition, on a requisition to that drawn. effect being deposited in the Private Bill Office, signed by s. O. 206. himself or by the agent who deposited the petition."

:

with

favour.

Petitions in favour of private bills are not referred to the Petitions in committee, as the petitioners are not parties to the bill. On one side are the promoters, and on the other petitioners against it but petitioners in favour of the bill can claim no hearing before the committee, except as witnesses. It has been intimated that counsel may allude to the presentation of such petitions in argument, but may not examine witnesses in respect of their contents or signatures.5

against

Petitions against a private bill originating in the House Petitions of Commons must be deposited "on or before the 12th bills to be deposited February;" and petitions against a provisional order bill before a (originating in the Commons) must be deposited "not later prescribed than seven clear days after notice has been given of the to stand

1 145 C. J. 402; 152 ib. 143; and cf. 67 Parl. Deb. 4 s. 27.

2 112 C. J. 193; 133 C. J. 113; and cf. the proceedings on the North Eastern Railway Bills (committee on Group 7), 24th and 27th June, 1892 (147 C. J. 398; 5 Parl. Deb. 4 s. 1920).

3 Supra, p. 725.

Cf. the proceedings on the

Thames Conservancy Bill, 1894 (149
C. J. 121); on the Thames Tunnel,
&c., Bill (Group 2, June 12 and 13),
1860; and on the South Yorkshire,
&c., Railway Bill (Group 8, June
27 and July 1), 1890.

5 Minutes of committee on Group
2 of Railway Bills, 1861 (17th
April).

time and

referred to the committee. S. O. 128, 210.

Rules as

to hearing

XXVII.

day on which the bill will be examined." In the case of Chapter
bills (including provisional order bills) which are brought
from the House of Lords: of bills which the promoters
have been permitted to deposit after the prescribed time; 1
and of bills promoted by the London County Council and
introduced under standing order 194,2 a petition against
the bill may be deposited at any time not later than ten
clear days after the first reading. Every petition against
a private bill (or a provisional order bill) which has been
deposited within the time thus prescribed or has been
otherwise deposited, in accordance with the standing orders,
and in which the petitioners pray to be heard by them-
selves, their counsel, or agents, stands referred to the com-
mittee on the bill, under standing order No. 210, without
any distinct reference from the house. And, subject to
the rules and orders of the house, such petitioners are to
be heard upon their petition accordingly, if they think fit,
and counsel heard in favour of the bill against such peti-
tion. Part of a petition having been omitted by mistake,
and afterwards added, it was ruled that such part was not
referred to the committee.5

No petitioners against a private bill (or provisional order petitioners bill) will be heard before the committee unless their petition has been prepared and signed in strict conformity S. O. 128. with the rules and orders of the house, and has been de

against bills.

posited within the time limited-except where the petitioners
complain of any matter which may have arisen in com-
mittee, or of any proposed additional provision, or of the
amendments as proposed in the filled-up bill."

1 Supra, p. 722.

2 Supra, p. 675.

When the 12th of February falls on a Sunday, the petitions required to be deposited on or before that day have to be deposited on or before Saturday, the 11th February. In the other cases the deposit may be made on the Monday, if the last day in the period prescribed for depositing a petition falls on a Sunday. Cf. 2 Clifford & Stephens, Locus Standi Reports, p. 4.

As to petitions against bills "substituted" for orders under the Private Legislation Procedure, Scotland Act, 1889, see infra, Chapter XXXI.

583 H. D. 3 s. 487.

See infra, p. 807. Petitions against alterations are not infrequently presented by parties who object to alterations, proposed to be made in the bill in committee, which might affect them. Where, however, these alterations are

Chapter
XXVII.

If a petition be presented after the time limited, the only Petitions mode by which the petitioners can obtain a hearing is by after time. deposited depositing a petition, praying that the standing orders be dispensed with in their case, and that they may be heard by the committee. The petition will stand referred to the standing orders committee; and if the petitioners be able to show any special circumstances which entitle them to indulgence, and, particularly, that they have not been guilty of laches, the standing orders will be dispensed with.1

Where petitioners have died after the deposit of their Death of petitions, their sons, or their agents or executors, have petitioners. petitioned to be heard, and, on the report of the standing orders committee, have been permitted to appear and be heard upon the petitions of the deceased petitioners,2 or to deposit a new petition after the time limited.3

No petition will be considered which does not distinctly Grounds of objection specify the grounds on which the petitioners object to any to be specified. of the provisions of the bill. The petitioners can only S 0.127. be heard on the grounds so stated. If not specified with sufficient accuracy, the committee may direct a more specific statement to be given, in writing, but limited to the grounds of objection which had been inaccurately specified; but this power has been seldom exercised.1

proposed only by petitioners against
the bill, the promoters are held to
be fully competent to defend their
bill without the intervention of the
petitioners against alterations; and
in such cases it is not usual for the
committee also to hear the peti-
tioners against alterations unless
the committee or the promoters
should be disposed to accept the
alterations so proposed.

1 Standing orders committee re-
port, That standing order 128 ought
to be dispensed with, 159 C. J. 48,
&c.; ought not to be dispensed
with, 159 ib., 235 &c. In 1905 the
standing orders committee having
reported, in the case of a peti-
tioner against the Great Northern
(Ireland), &c., Railways Bill, that
standing order 128 ought not to be

dispensed with, the house ordered
that the committee's resolution be
referred back to them, to consider
whether under the circumstances
of the case the standing order
should not be dispensed with; but
the committee again resolved that
it should not, 160 C. J. 61. 117. 128.

2 Petition of F. Hopkins against
the Lincolnshire Estuary Bill, 1851,
106 C. J. 226, 233.

3 Petition of the Duke of Portland against the Ardrossan and Glasgow Railway Bill, 1854 (109 C. J. 206, and Suppl. to Votes, 1854, p. 606). Petition of C. Morrison against the Metropolitan Inner Circle Railway Bill, 1878 (133 C. J. 112, and Private Business, 1878, p. 188), &c.

⚫ Cf., upon this point, the recom

Locus standi of petitioners

against private

bills in Commons.

XXVII.

Such being the general rules relating to petitions, it is Chapter now necessary to describe the mode of adjudicating upon formal objections, on the part of promoters, to petitions against a private bill, and upon the petitioner's rights to be heard before the committee appointed to deal with the bill. Prior to 1864, all such questions were heard and determined in both houses-as they still are in the Lords-by the committee on each bill. Considerable objection was raised to this practice on the ground of its inconvenience and expense, counsel and witnesses having often been kept in attendance on behalf of petitioners who were adjudged, at the eleventh hour, to have no claim to be heard. With a view to obviate these objections, and at the same time to introduce greater uniformity and certainty into the decisions upon these important points, the adjudication of questions of locus standi was entrusted by the Commons in 1865 to the "Referees of the House upon Private Bills," who had been constituted by a standing order passed in the preceding year.1

mendation of the Select Committee
on Private Business (H. C. No. 378)
of Session 1902 (p. ix. of Report).

1 As originally constituted, the
Referees consisted of the chairman
of ways and means, and other
members, the Speaker's counsel,
and several official referees who
were not members of the House.
Until 1868 the referees sat as three
courts, one of which dealt only with
locus standi questions. The two
remaining courts dealt with the
engineering estimates, and other
particulars, of bills referred to the
referees, under standing orders, for
this purpose; and the referees were
also empowered in some cases to
deal with the whole subject-matter
of a bill. (Cf. the S. O.'s passed in
1864 & 1865 and numbered 93-96 in
1865, which were repealed 17th
March, 1868; and the Instruction
to the Committee of Selection, 1st
March, 1867). But the consideration
by the referees, in these two courts,
of these engineering and other mat-

ters was discontinued in 1868; and
since that year there has only been
one Court of Referees-that,
namely, for the determination of
locus standi questions. From 1868
to 1903, however, the official
referees already mentioned were
regularly associated with com-
mittees on private bills, to which
they were appointed by the Com-
mittee of Selection or the General
Committee on Railway, &c., Bills,
under standing order: they assisted
the committees in their consider-
ation of the bills; and until 1876
they also possessed the power of
voting. In 1903 this appointment
of official referee was finally dis-
continued. (Cf. Appendix 8 to
Report of Select Committee (H. C.
No. 378) of 1902 on Private Busi-
ness; Clifford's Hist. of Private
Bill Legislation, II. 804-813; and
Report from Select Committee (H.
C. Paper No. 108) of 1876 on the
Referees on Private Bills, 131 C. J.
101. 120.)

Chapter
XXVII.

upon pri

stitution

As at present constituted under this standing order (No. Referees 87), in its amended form, the Referees consist of the chair- vate bills: man of ways and means, and the deputy chairman, with their connot less than seven other members of the house, who are and duties (S. O. 87, appointed by Mr. Speaker for such periods as he thinks fit. 89); They have the assistance of the counsel to Mr. Speaker; and their duty, as defined by standing order No. 89, is to decide

"Upon all petitions against private bills, or against provisional orders, or provisional certificates, as to the rights of the petitioners to be heard upon such petitions-without prejudice, however, to the power of the select committee to which the bill is referred to decide upon any question as to such rights arising incidentally in the course of their proceedings."

Under standing order No. 88

(S. O. 88,

"The practice and procedure of the referees, their times of sitting, And rules of proorder of business, and the forms and notices required in their proceed- cedure. ings, shall be prescribed by Rules, to be framed by the chairman of ways and means, subject to alteration by him as occasion may require, 151.) but only one counsel shall appear before such referees in support of a private bill, or in support of any petition in opposition thereto, unless specially authorized by the referees."

By one of the Rules made by the chairman of ways and means under this standing order, the promoters of a bill who intend to object to the right of petitioners to be heard against it, are to give notice of such intention, and of the grounds of their objection, to the clerk to the referees and to the agents for the petitioners, not later than the eighth day after the day on which the petition was actually deposited in the Private Bill Office; 2 but the referees may permit such notices to be given, under special

1 The present Rules were laid on the table, 28th February, 1906 (Paper No. 66 of Session 1906).;

2 The time allowed for serving such notices of objection is exclusive of the day on which the petition was deposited (Smethurst on Locus Standi (2nd edit.), 6, and App. 97;

2 Clifford & Stephens, Locus Standi
Reports, 2). It has been ruled that
the service of such notices by post
is not sufficient: but under certain
circumstances it has been allowed
(Smethurst, 7, and App. 98; 3
Clifford & Rickards, L. S. Reports,
376).

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