HOME RULE.

Taranaki Daily News, 13 May 1920, Page 5

HOME RULE.

BILL. IN THE COMMONS. SINGLE PARLIAMENT REJECTED, By Telegraph.—Press Assn.—Copyright. London, May 10. The House of Commons has entered the committee stage on the Home Rule Bill.

Before the discussions opened the chairman ruled out a number of amendments embodying alternative schemes as 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 years on the lines of the 1914 Act.

Mr. Asquith maintained that the duplication of Parliaments, executives and judiciaries gave every opportunity for friction. The 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 21-IV. Asquith did not realise all that had happened during the last six years. While it was true that Irish members had not voted on the Government's Bill it was equally true that they would have opposed Mr. Asquith's proposal. Ulster's attitude was an immence advance on that of 1914. Whereas Ulster then insisted on exclusion it now accepted 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 herself? If the Government's proposal was adopted we could say to Ireland and the world: "We have given you as generous a measure of local Government as we think possible on conditions which mean that the moment Irishmen can agree among themselves they can have it completely in one Parliament." The Government's object was to make unity easier.

Sir Edward Carson regarded the six year proposal as retrograde and impracticable. Although lie detested the idea of breaking up the Parliament of the United Kingdom he pledged himself in the interests of the attempt at the peace of Ulster to do his best to work its Parliament if it were enacted.

Mr Asquith's amendment was defeated by 259 votes to 55,—Imperial Service.