HOME RULE BILL

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 195, 13 May 1920, Page 5

HOME RULE BILL

: 1 LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACCEPTED BY ULSTER DANGER OF UNINFORMED COMMENT AMENDMENT BY ASQUITH DEFEATED By Telegraph—Press Association—Oopyrlght , ■ i London, May 10. The House of Commons has entered tlie Committee stage with the Home Rule Bill. Before the discussions opened, tho chairman lined out a number of amendments, embodying Alternative schemes, as being equivalent to negatives of the Bill, but; permitted Mr. Asquith to move an amendment providing for a single Irish Parliament with county option for Ulster for a limited period of six vears, on the lines of tho 1911' Act. ' . Mr. Asquith maintained that duplication. of Parliament, executives, and judiciaries gave every opportunity for friction. Tho Government's plan was not countenanced by any section of Irish opinion, and would not be a steppingstone to Irish unity. ; Mr. Bonar Law emphatically asserted that Mr. Asquith did not realise all that had happened in the last six years. While tho true Irish members had not . voted for the Government's Bills, it was equally true that they would have opposed Mr. ABquith's proposal. Ulsters attitude was an immense advance on that of 1914. Whereas Ulster then insisted on exclusion, it now accepted l local government for the whole of Ireland. Mr. Bonar Law stressed the extent to 'which they had suffered from ■uninformed foreign and Dominion comment, which asked, "Why not let Ireland govern hereelf?" If the Government's proposal was accepted they could say to Ireland and the world: "Wo have given, yoa. as' generous a measure tof local government as we think possible,- on conditions which mean that the moment Irishmen can agree among themselves they have it completely in on© Parliament." The Government's object was to make unity easier. Sir Edward Carson said he regarded the six-year proposal as retrograde and impracticable. Although lha detested the idea of breaking up the Parliament of the United Kingdom, he pledged himself in the interests of an attempt to secure peace, that Ulster would do the best to work its Parliament if it was enacted. Mr. A6quith's amendment was defeated by 259 votes to 55—Ans.-N.Z. Cable Assn.