29 JULY 1938, Page 3

The Week in Parliament Our Parliamentary Correspondent writes : On

Tuesday the following paragraph appeared in a London evening newspaper : " At least five important measures dealing with agriculture, electricity supply and prison reform await Parliamentary attention. Meanwhile more and more time is being spent on useless debate on worn topics. There is another foreign affairs debate tonight." This is a fair example of the remarkable ignorance of the working of the Parlia- mentary machine which is constantly manifested by a certain section of the Press. As it happened, Tuesday was a Supply day, that is to say one of the twenty days set aside in every session for reviewing the administration of the departments. It followed that on that particular day no legislation was possible. But in any case, the summer recess begins on Friday. Did the writer seriously suppose, one wonders, that a comprehensive measure dealing with electricity or agriculture could be passed through all its stages in four days ?

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