§ SIR H. W. BARRONwished to put a question to the right hon. Baronet at the head of the Government, of which he had given notice, respecting the duty on Irish, spirits. It was proposed that foreign spirits should be admitted at a reduced duty; and he wished to know whether any similar reduction was to be made on the duty upon Irish spirits, so that the Irish proprietors and the Irish distillers might not be placed in a worse position than that which they at present occupied in the English market?
§ SIR R. PEELsaid, that Irish spirits introduced into England or into Scotland, were permitted to be entered on paying the same amount of duty to which English spirits and Scotch spirits were subject. He was sure that the hon. Gentleman did not mean to ask that Irish spirits should be admitted into England on payment of the Irish duty. That duty was only 2s. 10d; foreign spirits would be subject to a duty of 15s., and they would, therefore, not come into competition under very favourable circumstances with Irish spirits. He did not intend that Irish spirits should be admitted to the English market on the 495 payment of a less duty than that to which they were subject at present—namely, the duty to which British spirits were subject.
§ SIR H. W. BARRONonly wished to know whether a reduction of the duty on Irish spirits would be made corresponding with the reduction of the duty on foreign spirits?
§ SIR R. PEELsaid, that the hon. Baronet put the question as if he were disposed to complain of a grievance. But there was in reality no grievance whatever in the case. Ireland was permitted to distil spirits on payment of a duty of 2s. 10d., while the duty in England was 7s. 10d. Ireland was, therefore, fairly dealt with in the matter.
§ SIR H. W. BARRONsaid, that the right hon. Baronet had diverted the attention of the House from the main point. He did not wish that Irish spirits should pay a less duty in the English market than that paid by English spirits. His object merely was that there should be a reduction of the duty on the home-grown article proportioned to the reduction of the duty on the foreign commodity.
§ SIR R. PEELsaid, that the Notice given by the hon. Baronet was as follows:—"To ask Sir R. Peel if any alteration is to be proposed by which the landed interest in Ireland may have the benefit of the British markets for Irish spirits." Surely the landed interest in Ireland would not be deprived of any advantage to which they were fairly entitled by the proposed alteration of the duty on foreign spirits.
§ SIR H. W. BARRONcertainly felt that the question, as it appeared in the Notice Paper, was not sufficiently explicit; and he had, therefore, thought it his duty to state the immediate point to which he wished to call the attention of the right hon. Baronet.
§ Subject at an end.