The House and Mr. Hudson
It is not surprising that Mr. R. S. Hudson found the sense of the House of Commons against him when he asked for certain excessive powers for officials under one clause of the Milk and Dairies Bill. On the main issues of the Bill he has behind him general support. Determined efforts must be made to ensure the production of clean milk, and the Minister is quite right in insisting on measures to provide proper conditions in the dairies ; his firm attitude has met with the approval it deserves. But he was distinctly ill-advised when he resisted an amendment to ensure that a dairy farmer would not be struck off the register solely because in the opinion of an official of the Ministry he was not in a position to produce clean milk. He would thus be condemned before the offence had been committed. Such a clause, in short, would enable an official to deprive a farmer of his means of livelihood, not only for some actual failure to comply with regulations, but because the official had formed an opinion about the capacity to comply. This obviously would not do. Even in the interests of pure milk officials cannot be given absolute powers of this sort. A right of effective appeal is essential. Mr. Hudson began by conceding a right of appeal to a tribunal of three,—the regional veterinary inspector of the Ministry, and one nominee each of the Milk Marketing Board and the National Farmers' Union—whose finding would not, however, bind the Minister. Under further pressure he agreed that it should be bind- ing if unanimous: That leaves no very serious grievance, but it is a pity that Mr. Hudson had to be pushed so hard into a concession so reasonable. At the same time it is useful to have the effect of criticism in the House so clearly demonstrated.
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