HC Deb 06 April 1865 vol 178 cc861-3

Order for Committee read.

Bill considered in Committee.

(In the Committee.)

Clause 1 agreed to.

Clause 2 (Power of Secretary of State in Council to purchase Land.)

SIR GEORGE BOWYER

rose to object to the system of the Chairman in calling out simply the number of the clauses, instead of following the old practice of reading the marginal notes of each clause.

MR. VANSITTART

observed, that the clause gave power to the Secretary of State for India to purchase lands with money derived from Indian revenue. He wished to know what had become of the £200,000 received from the sale of the old East India House, Haileybury and Addiscombe Colleges, and Warley? He had looked over the accounts and could not find those sums charged to the credit of the Indian Government. Probably they had been handed over to the Chancellor of the Exchequer to enable him to produce a popular Budget on the eve of a general election.

SIR CHARLES WOOD

assured the hon. Member that if he would look hack to past accounts he would find the sums received from the sale of the properties mentioned duly credited to the Indian Government. The object of the Bill was not to purchase a site, but to take compulsory powers with respect to the land required for the building.

LORD CLAUD HAMILTON

observed, that the Secretary for India had stated on a previous occasion that nothing would be charged to the Indian revenue for the objects of this Bill.

SIR CHARLES WOOD

said, the object of the Bill was to obtain possession of property in order to widen the street, and the surplus land would probably be sufficient to meet all the expense.

LORD ROBERT CECIL

thought the hon. Baronet near him (Sir George Bowyer) was justified in calling attention to a departure from the old practice in Committee; inasmuch as it now appeared that when asked upon this very clause what had become of certain moneys the Secretary of State could only tell the hon. Member who put the question that if he looked through the accounts for five years he would find it all entered in them. He hoped that the old practice in Committee would be adhered to in future.

THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUER

said, that the term "old practice" seemed to imply an innovation on the part of the present Chairman of Ways and Means. From his own experience he could only state that he was not aware of any innovation. The practice had always been to adapt the rate of progress with the Bill to the importance of the Bill itself. He himself had introduced a Bill consolidating all the laws relating to the duties upon spirits, which contained 400 clauses, which Bill passed through Committee in five minutes. Mem- bers were supposed to have the Bill in their hands and to be able to call attention to any clause upon which they had any remark to make.

SIR GEORGE BOWYER

disclaimed any intention to impute blame to the Chairman, who had only followed the practice of his predecessors; but he still maintained that the old and the proper practice was for the Chairman to read the marginal note of each clause. The Chancellor of the Exchequer said that the rate of progress of a Bill depended upon the importance of the Bill; but that was not a question that ought to be left to the discretion of any officer of the House, however high his authority might be.

MR. VANSITTART

observed, that although the Secretary of State for India told them that the clause only gave power to purchase land, yet there was a charge for the cost of such land upon the Indian revenues.

SIR CHARLES WOOD

said, he did not anticipate any loss, but if there were, it would fall on the revenues of India.

Clause agreed to.

Remaining clauses agreed to.

House resumed.

Bill reported; as amended, to be considered To-morrow.