Lord Robert Cecil's criticisms of the Advisory Committee which the
Development Bill proposed to set np have so greatly impressed the Government that Mr. Lloyd George announced an important concession in Grand Committee on Thursday. To assuage Lord Robert's apprehensions, which he admitted were legitimate, the Government now propose to create a Development Commission of five members, one of whom will be paid probably £1,000 a year. The Commission is to be independent during its term of office, there is to be absolute freedom as to procedure for arriving at its decisions, and its recommendations shall be final for rejecting, but not for accepting, an application. The Government pro- posals were acknowledged by Lord Robert Cecil as going far to meet his strongest objections to the Bill, but of course they do not touch the point raised in our leading columns.
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