SECOND READING. (Hansard, 18 June 1862)

§ MR. ALCOCK
said, he rose to ask the House to consent to the second reading of the Bill. He had placed a notice of it on the paper for the past five or six years in succession; hut he had taken no further steps, owing to the hon. Member for Tavistock (Sir John Trelawny) having a more important Bill on the same subject before the House. In the absence of such, however, at that time, he ventured to ask the House to give his Bill a second reading. It contained no compromise at all, no concession being made either to the Church or to Dissent. The object of the Bill simply was to afford facilities for raising by voluntary means permanent funds, so as to render parishes independent of any compulsory church rates. Such an object must be effected through the means of Commissioners, and he had selected the Charity Commissioners for the purpose. He felt confident that the 718 Bill he now proposed, if passed by Parliament, would not become a dead letter; and before the following Session he should be in a position to mention several parishes which had acted on it.

MR. EVANS
said, he would second the Motion. He believed, that if means were provided to parishes to commute their church rates, they would be taken advantage of, and in the end the present difficulties in regard to church rates would be avoided.

§ MR. NEWDEGATE
said, he wished he could induce the hon. Member for Surrey to join him in referring this Bill to a Select Committee. He (Mr. Newdegate), as well as the hon. Member for Surrey, sought to effect a commutation of church rates. He had a Bill before the House on that subject, but in deference to his right hon. Friend the Member for Wiltshire (Mr. S. Estcourt), he had postponed pressing it forward. He was convinced that the Bill of the hon. Member for Surrey did not provide the requisite machinery to effect its object. The result of passing such a measure would be to empower the Charity Commissioners to act as bankers in the matter; but the Bill took no means to provide any funds whereby its principle was to be carried out. The existing law was contradictory; and the question must be settled by a measure worthy of that House. He did not believe that Parliament would intrust any Commission with the power of going down to every parish to promote agitation, in the hope of obtaining money by creating annoyance; yet such, he feared, would be the effect of the scheme proposed by the Bill, if adopted.

§ SIR GEORGE GREY
said, he had no objection to the principle of the Bill, so far as it enabled parishes to effect voluntary commutation of church rates; but the measure provided no substitute whatever. If it were understood that the Bill would undergo thorough revision in Committee, he should not oppose the second reading of the measure.

MR. PACKE
said, he thought the measure would prove so utterly inoperative that it would he a waste of time to discuss it in its then shape. He would therefore move that the Bill be read a second time that day six months.

§ MR. SOTHERON ESTCOURT
said, he quite concurred in the objections of the right hon. Baronet opposite to the defective machinery of the Bill, and he hardly knew how the House could affirm its principle under such circumstances. He had a Resolution on the subject which he proposed to move on Tuesday. If the House should affirm that Resolution, the ground would be cleared for the hon. Gentleman's Bill or the Bill of any other hon. Member on the subject.

§ COLONEL WILSON PATTEN
said, he would suggest an adjournment of the debate to that day week.

§ MR. ALCOCK
said, he would consent to that course.