§ Mr. Fremantle moved that there be laid before the House a return of the income and charge upon the Consolidated Fund for the years ending the 5th of January, 1810, 1811, and 1812, together with an Account of the War taxes during the same period.
The Chancellor of the Exchequerobserved, that the hon. gent. had done him the honour to communicate to him the motion which he had just submitted to the House, together with two others of a similar nature, which he understood it was his intention also to propose. With respect to two of these three motions, he had no hesitation in objecting to them, because they would produce only what would be found in the annual accounts, which by law must be laid before parliament. When those accounts should come before the House, the hon. gent. might extract such parts as he required, and on them found any motion that he thought proper. As to the third motion, he had told the hon. gent. that if he would wait twenty-four hours, he would inquire whether the papers to be produced by it were in the same predicament as those to which he had just alluded, and if not that he would consent to their immediate production.
§ Mr. Tierneysaid, that he understood his hon. friend to wish not for the details of the accounts, but for the result. It was well known that the detailed accounts were never presented until a very late period of the session, and he contended that such a mode of opposition as that resorted to by the right hon. gent. would put a stop to all motions for papers relative to Finance.
The Chancellor of the Exchequerdenied that these accounts were presented at a period so late as that, described by the right hon. gent. He had no objection whatever to the production of the information, but he saw no reason for departing from the ordinary course.
§ Mr. Hornerthought the opposition of the right hon. gent. quite novel in its kind. During his short experience of parliament, he bad every session seen motions agreed to, for papers in distinct anticipation of the annual accounts. The papers moved for by his hon. friend were indispensible, in order to remove the anxiety which the mutilated statements in the public prints respecting the Revenue, had occasioned in the public mind. It was well known that a large volume of public accounts was usually presented about March; that it was then sent to the printer's, and that it was towards the end of the session before the House obtained that financial information so desirable at an earlier period. It was singular that while the right hon. gent. was opposing the present motion, his noble colleagues had, as he understood, acceded to a similar one in the other House.
The Chancellor of the Exchequerrepeated that he had no objection to the production of the information; but that if the ordinary course was sufficient for that purpose, it appeared to him to be idle to depart from it. If the hon. gent. would withdraw his motion, and give notice of it for to-morrow, by that time he should be enabled to ascertain how far the above observation was applicable to it.
§ Mr. Fremantleconsented to withdraw his motion for the present, and to give notice of it for tomorrow, but not for the reasons alledged by the right hon. gent. He distrusted the financial statement which the right hon. gent. had yesterday made; and he was anxious before that most important subject, the state of the finances, should come to be discussed, that the House should be in possession of all possible information with respect to it.