Mr. C Williams Wynnrose to complain of a Breach of Privilege. In perusing the Minutes of the Court Martial upon lord Gambier, he observed an official letter from the Admiralty to lord Cochrane, a member of that House, which he considered as an undoubted breach of privilege. Lord Cochrane having intimated, that he intended to oppose the vote of Thanks to lord Gambier, the Admiralty issued directions to his lordship in the letter to which he alluded, to state the grounds on which he meant to make that opposition. This, then, was a letter conveying an official direction to a member of that House to state the grounds by which his conduct in that House was to be governed. This, too, was put upon record, by warrant, upon the minutes of the Court-Martial. He did not know how there could be a more direct violation of the privileges of that House. He concluded by moving, as the ground of his complaint, for the order of the 7th of June, for trying lord Gambier, and for the letter of the 29th of May, addressed by the secretary of the Admiralty to lord Cochrane.
The Chancellor of die Exchequerobserved, that as these papers were moved on the ground of a breach of privilege, it would not be proper to refuse them; especially, as he saw no public ground for withholding them. But, he believed, that the hon. gent. would, when the papers were produced, find it difficult to contend with success, that this was a breach of privilege. He thought, on the contrary, that nothing was more consistent and proper, than that the admiralty, finding that his lordship, who had distinguished himself so much in the attack on the French fleet in Basque roads, intended to oppose the Vote of Thanks to lord Gambier, should desire his lordship to state his reasons for his opposition, in order to ascertain whether those were grounds for any proceedings against lord Gambier. But he would defer his opinion till the papers were produced.—The motion was then agreed to.