LEAVE. FIRST READING. (Hansard, 10 February 1859)

§ MR. CROSS
said, he ruse for leave to bring in a Bill to amend the law relating to Municipal Elections. So long as bribery and corruption prevailed at Municipal elections it was vain to expect purity of procedure at Parliamentary elections. The Municipal Corporations Act had certainly made provisions fur the prevention of corruption at the elections, but practically that Act had remained a dead letter, because the penalties were too severe, and the mode of recovering them too expensive. He, therefore, proposed by this Bill to make the penalties light, and the mode of recovering them summary. It might be said that another measure would shortly come before the House, dealing with the subject both of Municipal and Parliamentary Elections; but it might be long before the Bill would be introduced, and, after all, its provisions might not be materially different from those he proposed. There were other provisions for the saving of expense in the erection of polling booths, by requiring that notice should be given of the names of all candidates to be nominated before the election, so that there would be no need to erect polling places if there was to be no contest; also provision fur saving of expense in the drawing up of the burgess list, and for dividing those boroughs into wards which were not already divided. The hon. Gentleman concluded by moving for leave to introduce the Bill.

MR. GILPIN
seconded the Motion.

§ SIR G. PECHELL
said, there were many Amendments which might he introduced into the Bill, such as lowering the qualification of three years' residence to One year or nine months, prohibiting expenditure in the conveyance of voters to the poll, and others, which would make it much more valuable.

§ MR. DILLWYN
said, he hailed with 226 satisfaction any attempts to improve the law relating to Municipal elections, but he would suggest to the hon. Member that the only real mode of remedying the evils connected with them was to take the vote by ballot. That would afford a good test of the working of the ballot in Parliamentary elections.

MR. RIDLEY
said, he hoped that, as the Bill was a very important one, time would be given to consider it before the second reading.

§ MR. DARBY GRIFFITH
said, he thought there was one defect in the Bill as brought forward. He thought the Bill might go a little further, and take in municipal corporations, where there was a deal of jobbery. Members of town councils were prohibited from supplying articles to the corporation, but this was systematically broken through. The penalty being recoverable in the superior courts, it was too cumbrous to be put in frequent operation. If the penalty were lowered, it would be much more effective, He (Mr. Griffith) would suggest to the hon. Gentleman to alter his Bill so as to take that in.

§ MR. CROSS
said, he proposed to move the second reading that day fortnight.