§ Mr. Warburtonsaid, that seeing his hon. Friend (Mr. Pattison), at present one of the Members for the city of London, and who he hoped would continue to be so, in his place, he wished to ask him whether the Bill which had been brought in respecting the clause inserted in the charter of the Bank of England for discounting bills of exchange at three months, at a higher rate of interest than five per cent., and which went to extend that period to twelve months, met with his approbation, and with the approbation of his colleagues in the directory of the Bank of England?
§ Mr. Pattisonwas understood to say, that when he joined in bringing in the Bill to which his hon. Friend had referred at the commencement of the Session, he did so because he approved of the principle of the Bill, and because he had previously con- 1924 ferred with his colleagues—the directors of the Bank—on the subject, whose approbation he also believed had been unanimously given to that principle. He had always wished the clause in the charter to extend to bills for twelvemonths, instead of three. But the reason he had withdrawn from the management of the Bill this Session was, that at the time it was introduced he was the governor of the Bank of England, and he felt that it was better that he should not take a prominent part in the measure.
§ Mr. G. F. Youngobserved, that it was no doubt true that the hon. Member for the city of London had given his concurrence to the extension of the period of three months to twelve; but the statement that that extension of time had met with the concurrence of his colleagues, the directors of the Bank, was in contradiction to what was averred by an hon. Member on Saturday last, who expressly declared that as an individual director of the Bank the extension of the period to twelve months had not his individual concurrence.
§ Mr. Warburtonbegged to observe, that the statement made on Saturday was, that the Bank directors approved of the period of six months, and of that term only; therefore he was glad to have elicited from his hon. Friend the expression of his approbation of the term being extended to twelve months.