HC Deb 11 April 1856 vol 141 cc871-2
MR. LOCKE KING

said, he would beg to ask the right hon. Member for the University of Cambridge whether section 6 in the Appendix No. 2 of the Report of the Statute Law Commissioners of 1855, which contained remarks by Mr. Bellenden Ker, apparently with the implied sanction of the Commissioners, on the propriety of that House having ordered the expurgatory list of the statutes to be printed, was added to that Report with the knowledge and authority of the Commissioners? He would also put the same question with regard to the remarks made by Mr. Bellenden Ker (in the above Appendix to the Report dated the 9th day of July) on the Resolution passed by that House on the 19th day of June, that a declaratory Bill ought to be forthwith prepared, of which the expurgatory list should form the groundwork; and also the same question with regard to section 7 in the same Appendix, in which the Personal Estates of Intestates Bill, after it had passed that House, was denounced by Mr. Bellenden Ker?

MR. WALPOLE

said, he had explained on a former occasion the cause of the mistake, for such it was. The papers in question had been appended to one of the Reports of the Statute Law Commission, for the private use of the Commissioners, without any intention to publish them; and the Gentleman who prepared the index, not being aware of that fact, included them in the publication. He (Mr. Walpole) expressed his regret at the publication, but at the same time he felt confident that no injury could accrue to any of the Gentlemen, whose names were mentioned, from the mistake. There was no intention whatever of reflecting on any of the persons who were referred to in these papers.

MR. HADFIELD

said, he wished to know whether the mistake was that of the Commissioners, or of the party who produced the documents? If the latter, he thought it was a matter that required attention, for it seemed to him a great breach of privilege that a paid servant of that House should interpolate such documents among papers presented to the House.

MR. WALPOLE

said, he could assure the hon. Gentleman that it was a mistake of the Commissioners, which he very much regretted had occurred.