Lord Stanley, seeing the noble Lord, the Secretary for the Home Department, in his place, begged to claim his attention for a very short time in asking a question. He had that morning received a communication from a parish in Lancashire, from which it ap- 500 peared that some extensive alterations or improvements were contemplated by the authorities in respect to the parish church; but they could only carry this work into effect by mortgaging the church rates. He, therefore, wished to ask the noble Lord to give the House some information as to whether it was the intention of his Majesty's Government to bring forward a measure respecting Church-rates? and whether in such case care would be taken in such Bill to secure the validity of all existing arrangements under the present law?
§ Lord John Russellsaid, he had certainly given the House to understand that a measure in regard to Church-rates would be brought forward in the course of the ensuing Session. As his noble Friend had put this question, he would take that occasion to state to him and to the House, at what time and under what circumstances he proposed to bring forward the case. It would be recollected that on a former occasion, when a resolution was introduced which went to propose the abolition of Church-rates, it was strongly resisted, on the ground that the House were not fully informed of the actual amount of property held by the Church, and that it was not proper for the House to proceed to provide a substitute for Church-rates in the absence of such full and adequate information. He did not share in that opinion, but he did think it quite necessary that the question with respect to the appropriation of the Church revenues, according to the recommendation of the Commissioners, should be settled before they proceeded to deal with the question of Church-rates; because, if the House should agree with him in the opinion that the revenues of the church were barely sufficient for the religious instruction of the people, they would then have a ground upon which they might proceed. He would say, however, that his view of the matter, with regard to what were grievances, was, that in framing any measure bearing reference to Church regulations, the question ought to be considered as one affecting not a particular class, but the whole community. He had prepared two measures bearing on the subject of registration of marriages, &c, and he should consider it would be ineffectual to attempt to settle the question of Church-rates unless he were first prepared to settle that of registration of marriages, &c. Therefore, the answer which 501 he had to suggest to the noble Lord was this—that he did intend to bring forward, in the present Session of Parliament, a measure affecting Church-rates; but that his doing so must depend on the House joining with him in the opinion that the Church revenues should be disposed of in a manner conformable to the recommendations contained in the Report of the Commissioners; and that there should be a disposition on the part of the House to relieve all the prominent grievances of the Dissenters. He did not know that he need say further with regard to existing engagements contracted under the present law, because, certainly, all such contracts must be respected. The noble Lord concluded by moving the Order of the Day for the House resolving itself into a Committee on the Report on the Tithes Commutation Bill.