HC Deb 19 April 1842 vol 62 cc819-20
Mr. Wason

rose, pursuant to notice, for the purpose of calling the attention of the House to the injustice practised by the majority of the Ipswich Election Committee, in the different conduct pursued by them towards the witnesses before them, as such witnesses happen to give evidence for or against the political party to which the majority belong.

The Speaker:

The motion of the hon. Member is in all respects so irregular and so unparliamentary, that I have thought it necessary at once to interfere and stop the hon. Member. His motion implies a censure upon the conduct of a committee which is still sitting. It is contrary to the rules of proceeding in this House to arraign the conduct of any committee until after it makes its report, and it is in the highest degree irregular to allude to its proceedings in the manner proposed by the hon. Member; and I wish to put it to the hon. Member that the committee to which his notion refers stands in a peculiarly inde- pendent position towards this House. Its proceedings are conducted under an act of Parliament to try the merits of a controverted election. It is, therefore, clearly not decorous to allude to the conduct of Members composing that committee.

Mr. Wason

said, that, of course, it was his duty to bow implicitly to the decision of the Chair; but he thought he had sufficiently guarded himself by the terms of his notice, and he wished to add, that he did not intend to conclude with any motion. All that he wanted to do was to call the attention of the House to that, which he conceived to be a breach of privilege.

Mr. Pakington

greatly regretted that the: forms of Parliament rendered it impossible for the hon. Member to bring forward the; motion of which he had given notice, and therefore prevented his repelling with the utmost indignation the calumnious and unfounded charge which such a motion involved. It was his painful duty to preside;over the proceedings of a court which had to investigate the manner in which the late Ipswich election had been carried on, and, i though on account of the formal objection stated from the Chair, such a motion could not be entertained; the committee courted investigation, and they did most earnestly hope that at some future period an opportunity would be afforded them of vindicating their own conduct and motives by allowing the hon. Member to bring forward his motion. He thought it right to add, that though the committee were unanimous as to the character of the evidence, they, were not unanimous as to the manner in which it should be followed up.

Mr. Rennie

did not concur with his hon. i Colleague; but he felt that it was out of, order to proceed with the matter.

Sir R. Inglis

thought, that the words which fell from the Chair ought to be re corded, or the motion ought to be expunged, as was the case in the year 1835.

The Speaker

said, mere notices of motions were never entered in the journals.