HC Deb 16 May 1865 vol 179 cc390-2
MR. HENRY SEYMOUR

said, he had intended to put a Question to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, who he conceived would have been the proper person to give an answer upon the subject, but he was told that the matter fell within the Department of the First Commissioner of Works. He would therefore ask the right hon. Gentleman, When he will bring on his scheme for the enlargement of the British Museum; and if it will be before Members began to separate in anticipation of the General Election?

MR. COWPER

said, in reply, that last year plans were prepared for the erection of buildings for the reception of the Natural History Collection of the British Museum. Other plans were also transmitted to the Trustees of the Museum for their consideration. He was now in communication with the Trustees upon the details of those plans, but nothing had as yet been finally determined upon. He was, therefore, not able to say when action would be taken upon those plans by the production of an Estimate of cost; but he could assure the hon. Gentleman that no unnecessary delay should occur in the preparation of that Estimate.

MR. HENRY SEYMOUR

said, he wished to know whether the scheme involved the removal of some of the departments of the British Museum to South Kensington?

MR. COWPER

said, the plans were for the erection of a building to contain all the Natural History Collections upon ground already purchased at South Kensington, which property had been purchased with the view that such buildings should be erected. Therefore, these plans seemed to be the necessary sequence of the steps previously taken by the Government.

MR. GREGORY

said, the House wanted to know whether an opportunity would be afforded to them of expressing an opinion upon the question whether the Natural History Collection should be removed to South Kensington. They wished to have a definite answer to the question whether the House of Commons would have an early opportunity of expressing their opinions upon this subject, or would the decision be deferred until lion. Gentlemen had gone back to their constituents?

MR. COWPER

said, the question was rather vague as to time, because he did not know when the hon. Gentleman would visit his constituents. He could not fix any definite time, but the ordinary course of taking the sense of the House was by producing an Estimate of cost, which the House could accept or reject as it pleased. That Estimate would be produced as soon as the requisite preliminaries to the formation of it had been gone through. It could not be before. [An hon. MEMBER: Will it be this Session?] He should be unwilling to enter into the region of prophecy. He was at present in communication with the Trustees relative to the plan, and when it was finally agreed upon the Estimate would be laid on the table without a moment's delay on his part; but it certainly was asking too much to ask him to say when the plan would be decided on and the Estimate produced?

MR. AUGUSTUS SMITH

said, he wished to know when the Bill would be ready to be laid on the table, because it was the Bill, not the Estimate, which would decide whether the collections were to be separated or not?

MR. COWPER

said, the hon. Member had better give notice if he wanted to know about the Bill, for he was not in a position to say anything about it. All he could say was that when the Estimate was ready it would be laid on the table.