COMMITTEE. RESOLUTION. FIRST READING. (Hansard, 7 February 1867)

§ SIR STAFFORD NORTHCOTE

rose to propose that— The Chairman be directed to move the House that leave be given to bring in a Bill for the Abolition of certain Exemptions from Local Dues on Shipping and on Goods earned in Ships. It would, he said, be convenient that he should defer, as far as possible, any discussion on the Bill which it was sought to introduce until it was in print; but he might then briefly state that last year a law was passed in France, admitting foreign ships to very great advantages, which they had not heretofore enjoyed in French ports, but this privilege was limited to the vessels of those countries which treated French ships with perfect reciprocity. The nature of the new French law was this, that it abolished the tonnage dues which weighed heavily on ships entering French ports, but retained power for the Emperor to re-impose them upon the ships of countries which did not "grant reciprocity to the French Mercantile Marine." The French Government had communicated to the British Government its wish that the benefits of this law might be shared by British ships; but stated, that for this purpose it was necessary that the British Government should abolish those exemptions from local dues in respect of British ships which were still enjoyed by a small number of persons in our seaports. These exemptions were now very limited, and of infinitesimal value; and it had always been contended on our side that they were not, strictly speaking, any breach of reciprocity, inasmuch as the dues in question were not levied on French or foreign ships in particular, but also on British ships. The French, however, argued that that was not satisfactory to them, and that, in point of fact, an Englishman might gain an exemption from 109 some of those dues, whereas a Frenchman never could. In that state of the case, it was thought by Her Majesty's Government desirable to extinguish the remaining exemptions of that character; and the French Government had very handsomely accepted the intimation of the Government's intention to submit a Hill to Parliament; and the Emperor, although he had re-imposed the restrictions upon American ships, abstained from doing so with regard to British ships, until he ascertained whether Parliament would pass the proposed Bill. The Bill provided that the local exemptions, which are now enjoyed by very few persons, should be abolished within a very limited time, and that compensation to the persons who enjoyed them should be made—not, of course, out of any Imperial or public funds, but out of those funds which would profit directly by their abolition—namely, the funds of the harbour or other trusts to which the dues in question were payable. The right hon. Baronet concluded by moving his Resolution.