WAYS AND MEANS. (Hansard, 12 February 1841)

§ The Chancellor of the Exchequer
moved the Order of the Day for a Committee of Ways and Means.

§ Mr. Goulburn
pointed out an irregularity, as it appeared to him, in the course 623 proposed. The practice has been to get a vote of supply, and then to go into a Committee of Ways and Means. Now at present only a fictitious vote had been taken, and he hoped this departure from the old practice would not be drawn into a precedent.

§ The Chancellor of the Exchequer
said, there was no novelty in the course he proposed, which had been invariably followed of late years. He admitted the vote he had taken was a mere fiction, but like many others, such as John Doe and Richard Roe, it was a very useful fiction.

§ Sir R. Peel
said, it would be better to postpone the present vote for a day or two, rather than run the risk of establishing a bad precedent. The right hon. Gentleman said, there was no novelty in the proceeding—this course certainly was not followed in the good year 1835.

§ The Chancellor of the Exchequer
observed, that there was no novelty, except that the Chancellor of the Exchequer had stated the truth.

§ Mr. Herries
suggested, that it would be better to postpone the Committee of Ways and Means, in order that the system might be put in a better course. If the transfer of aid was now taken, it would, legally speaking, be a mis-appropriation, if applied before the 1st of April, 1841. In the case of the navy estimate, this had been done to the extent of 300,000l., and it was clearly illegal.

§ The Chancellor of the Exchequer
consented to the postponement of the committee.