Mr. Bankesrose and moved, That the three first of the Resolutions which, upon the 31st of May, 1810, were reported from the Committee of the whole House, to whom it was referred, to consider further of the Report which, upon the 29th of June, 1808, was made from the Committee on Public Expenditure, and which Resolutions were, with an Amendment to the second and third, agreed to by the House, might be read; and the same were read as follow:
"Resolved, That the utmost attention to economy, in all the branches of public expenditure, which is consistent with the interests of the public service, is at all times a great and important duty.
"That for this purpose, in addition to the useful and effective measures already taken by parliament for the abolition and regulation of various sinecure offices, and offices executed by deputy, it is expedient, after providing other and sufficient means for enabling his Majesty duly to recompence the faithful discharge of high and effective civil offices, to abolish all offices which have revenue without employment, and to regulate all offices which have re- 163 venue extremely disproportionate to employment, excepting only such as are connected with the personal service of his Majesty, or of his royal family, regard being had to the existing interests in any offices so to be abolished or regulated.
"That it is expedient to reduce all offices, of which the effective duties are entirely or principally discharged by deputy, to the salary and emoluments actually received for executing the business of such offices, regard being had to any increase which may appear necessary on account of additional responsibility, and sufficient security being taken for due performance of the service in all cases of trust connected with public money, regard being also had to the existing interests in such office."
The hon. gentleman said, that there was nothing on which the country looked with more pleasure than on the salutary principles of regulation which ought to be applied to Sinecure offices. Nothing, however could be so mischievous as those publications which, being dictated either by ignorance or by malice, tended to make the people imagine, that any reduction which could be made in the department of useless offices, was likely to diminish in any sensible degree the burthens created by the war. It would also be a great imposition on the House, if he should pretend, that the motion which he had to propose could be attended with an immediate economical effect. All that could be done was the establishment of the economical principle; and this, in the end, would have a sure, though a slow effect. Sinecures were but small drops to be saved from the ocean of expence; and again, he must caution the public from looking to their abolition as a cause of diminishing the public burthen. Much, certainly, had been done with a view to economy within the last forty years,—much more, indeed, than had been effected in that way from the period of the Revolution. His view was to abolish every office to which no efficient duties were attached; and this would be productive of gradual benefit. The offices obnoxious to him were those which were only burthen some, and not in any sense advantageous. He would follow the rules established for superannuation in the collection of the revenue; because as the practice of bestowing sinecures at present stood, there were seldom, any claims of meritorious service ad- 164 vanced, and they were conferred alike on the worthy and unworthy. He hoped the House would always shew its liberality, in being never niggardly to services fairly established:—such money was never ill bestowed; and, in fact, money must be bestowed, unless we chose to leave public, situations either to the aristocracy of fortune or to needy speculating adventurers. He should be sorry to see a contest between the aristocracy and the active talent of the country, for in such a strife it required little sagacity to foresee who would be victorious. It was to guard against any such fatal alternative, that be wished meritorious service of a certain duration to be rewarded; not, however, by the objectionable mode of sinecure, but by what he conceived a far better substitution; His motion contemplated the establishment of a fund, which in the first instance was to be begun by the profits of the sinecure which would soonest drop. The fund would be recruited by the very saving of the plan he had to propose. If any inconvenience should arise from no sinecure office becoming in a short time vacant after the adoption of his plan, the House would not, he was confident, be backward in supplying the deficiency. Something ought to be done towards the destruction of the principle on which sinecures were now bestowed; and if the principle were once destroyed, those sinecures which might remain, would only be considered as exceptions to a general rule, and would lose all their deformity. The Irish pension list also deserved to be looked into. This pension list was enormously extravagant, when added to the burthens which Ireland had to bear in contributing her 2–17ths to the expences of the whole country. Its pension list alone was 80,000l. a year. He would not now occupy more of the time of the House, as the time for discussing the principle of his Bill would be more properly on the second reading. The hon. gentleman concluded by moving, "That leave be given to bring in a Bill for abolishing and regulating sinecures and offices executed by deputy, and for providing other means for recompensing the faithful discharge of high or effective civil offices, and for other economical purposes."—Leave was accordingly given, and Mr. Bankes, Mr. Wilberforce, and Mr. J. W. Ward were ordered to prepare and bring in the same.